


Solangelo Stories

by demiboy_demon



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types
Genre: M/M, Transgender, Transgender Characters
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-08
Updated: 2019-03-12
Packaged: 2019-10-06 17:33:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 114
Words: 81,120
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17349563
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/demiboy_demon/pseuds/demiboy_demon
Summary: A good life is like a good collection of oneshots. There's angst, fluff, smut, and over explained gay puns.These oneshots all take place in the canon universe. AUs are currently being moved to another book.





	1. Ask Solangelo

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chiron finds out that people are willing to pay a lot of money for answers about Camp Half Blood’s favorite couple.

When Chiron suggested it, Will wasn’t sure what to think, but Nico was. 

“Absolutely not!” Nico yelled, drawing eyes from the surrounding tables. 

“Chiron,” Will asked, “Why do you want us to do this? I thought you were against us dating.”

“I’m against you using your doctors notes to get your boyfriend out of things,” Chiron explained, “But you and Nico are currently the most popular couple in camp and, well, with all of the new cabins being built, we need some extra income. I figured people would pay to ask you two questions.”

“So people invade our privacy and you get paid?” Nico said. He looked at Will. “Do you hear this guy?”

Will looked between Chiron and his boyfriend for a moment. “I might have a compromise.”

And so Nico and Will agreed, because; 

Firstly, they were tired of having to search Nico's cabin every time they made out, and maybe doing this would decrease the amount of snoopers.

And secondly, Chiron was paying them each in pie. A lot of pie. Enough pie to satisfy even someone with a Dean Winchester like love of pie.

Jason walked in first. 

“Typical.” Nico grumbled so only Will could hear, “Of course Jason is the first”

Jason put the money in their jar and sat at the opposite side of the table. 

"So... I have fifteen minutes of questions, and I fully plan to make them count. Okay, so first, what is the most embarrassing thing Nico has ever done to you, Will?" 

Will looked up. "I don’t think Nico’s ever embarrassed me.”

“What about something embarrassing he’s done to himself?”

“I'd have to say it was this time I found him in a medicine cabinet.” Will admitted. “He was trying to shadowtravel to me, but got stuck in there for some reason.”

Jason nodded, "Interesting answer. What about you, Neeks? Wha—" 

Nico cut him off, "If you call me that again I will rip out your tongue with my teeth.”

Realizing the implications behind that statement, he blushed and stammered, "I- I didn't mean it that way." 

Will spoke up. "I've changed my mind. That was the most embarrassing thing he's ever done." 

Jason cleared his throat. "Anyway, Nee- um, Nico, what's the most embarrassing thing Will has ever done to you?" 

Nico looked to Will and grinned while Will put his head in his hands. 

"Once, Will got drunk and when I picked him up, he asked if I was single. When I said I wasn't, he started crying about how I was so cute and brave.”

Jason looked unimpressed. "That's not as bad as some things Piper, Leo, and I've done. Once, we snuck into a nightclub and stole all the olives, then Piper charmspoke people into wanting martinis and we watched while drunk people cried over not getting olive in their drinks.”

“That’s kinda mean,” Will said.

Jason shrugged. “I need to be more Greek, and you guys are mean.”

“Rude.”

“Anyway, this is the most important question. Nico is like a brother to me,” Jason started.

“I am?” Nico interrupted. “What?”

“And as his self appointed older brother figure, I need to ask- how far have you two gone?” 

Nico and Will both just sat there. 

“Jason,” Will eventually said, “Nico and I have been together for years. Of course we’ve,” Will paused, “You know.”

Jason nodded. “That’s fair. Just make sure to use protection.”

“Jason, my sex life isn’t any of your business.” Nico said.

“I just care about you,” Jason protested, “You’re like a brother to me.”

Nico sighed. “Fine. As long as you don’t try to give me a sex talk. Between Hazel and Reyna being as overprotective as they are and my boyfriend being a doctor, I’ve got that covered.”

“Hopefully you’ve also got your dick covered. STDs are no joke.”

“Please shut up before I make you.” Nico said. He didn’t need to, because just then the timer went off.

“Thank the gods!” Nico cried out, pressing the button. 

Once Jason had left, Nico turned to Will. “That was the longest 15 minutes of my life.”

“Agreed,” Will seconded, “But it’s worth it. You ever had chess pie?”


	2. Casual Depression

Will and Nico were lying on the floor of the Apollo cabin. Most of Will's siblings had gone home for the winter holidays, and the others were busy doing whatever they did during the cold, snowy days. 

Nico and Will were less than a foot from Will's bed, but they didn't care. The floor was comfortable when you're wrapped in your boyfriend's arms.

"I crave death." Nico sighed from the floor. 

Will stared at him. "Is this because I ate your Pop-tarts?"

"It's because I have depression. And I don't even have Pop-tarts to console me."

"I got you more Pop-tarts."

"I already ate them, though."

"I can't really take responsibility for that, but I love and support you."

Nico felt arms wrap around him and lift him off the ground with difficulty. "Oh, gods. I am not as strong as I thought I was." 

Will groaned as he moved Nico to his bed before collapsing next to him. "What a rush." 

Will got up and grabbed some things from his closet. 

Nico wasn't sure what until he felt blankets wrap around him. He opened his eyes and saw a box of Pop-tarts and Will's smiling face. "I got my emergency Pop-tarts! And I built a pillow fort."

"I love you so fucking much." Nico said from within his pillow fort. 

"I love you so fucking much, too." Will said from beside him. “Casual depression’s got nothing on us!”


	3. Cheating

"I'm so in love!" Jason heard Will say to one of his siblings. He wasn’t sure which one, because there were several, and he couldn’t see through the dust filled air filter covering the vent he was watching from. 

He wished someone would clean the vent so he could spy more easily. Obviously no one bothered, which seemed very selfish to him. 

"I have never loved anything more!" Will said, "So chunky! So amazing! I'm always left both satisfied and wanting more!" The air turned on, blasting Jason again with dust and a rush of freezing air. 

Although Will's words were muffled due to Jason’s ears now being covered in dust, he heard what he said very clearly. "I love Jeff. I feel bad cheating, but it's so worth it." He paused. "Don't tell Nico."

‘What? No.’ Jason thought. He left immediately to find Nico. If no one was going to tell him, Jason would. It was his duty as his self appointed brother figure.

 

"Nico!" Jason shouted. "Open your door, it's important!" 

 

Nico begrudgingly opened his door, and Jason rushed in. 

"What do you want, Jason? I'm exhausted." Nico complained. 

‘Well, his bad day is about to get a whole lot worse.’ Jason thought. He took a deep breath. 

"Nico, don't stab me." Jason said, stepping toward him. "Your boyfriend is cheating on you." 

Nico laughed halfheartedly. "Sure, Jason." 

After spending another hour trying to convince Nico of the truth, Jason gave up and left Nico alone with his thoughts. 

 

Nico wondered if Will was cheating on him. Probably not, right? 

But what if he was? Nico knew he wouldn’t be able to move on without seeing it himself. 

 

Nico didn’t think very much of himself, but he couldn’t believe Will would do this. Will said he loved Nico, and Nico trusted him. Either way, Nico needed to talk to Will.

Nico was about to open the door when he heard Will’s voice inside. 

“I always shower so no one can smell what I’ve been doing. I can’t stop.” 

Nico burst through the door. He stopped with his hand on the handle, hearing Will moan from inside. He was going to see him with someone else, wasn’t he? But if he didn’t break them up now, he never would. 

He does see Will, but not with a boy. He was holding an enormous jar of peanut butter. In his other hand was a spoon, and he was shoveling peanut butter into his mouth. 

"Nico? Don't look at me! I'm disgusting!" Will shouted when he saw his boyfriend, holding out his hands to shield the sun from his eyes. 

"What the Hades, Will?" Nico yelled. Then he realized that Will wasn't cheating on him, but eating peanut butter. So he sat next to him and asked him what was going on.

"I bought seven jars of peanut butter, and I'm so ashamed that I ate them all. I'm so sorry." He sobbed as Nico patted his shoulder. 

"So you aren't cheating on me with Jeff?" Nico asked him. 

Will looks at Nico with a confused expression. "No. I don’t even know a Jeff.”

"So what did you mean earlier?" Nico asked before telling him what Jason had said.

Will frowned. “And you thought I had cheated on you?”

“Not really, but I was a little concerned. Are you mad at me? Do you hate me?" 

“Of course not. People have lied to you before. I love you, and I ate seven Costco jars of peanut butter, so we both messed up. Honest mistakes." Will kissed Nico’s cheek. “But let’s make sure to seal up that vent.”


	4. Confession

Jason POV

“I just.... I really like you." I hear Nico say. 

"And if you don't feel the same way, I totally understand. I mean, I'm just me, and you're you, and— no. Dammit. Now it seems like I'm looking for pity. I need to do this right." 

Nico walks back into my line of sight and scratches out what he had previously written in his notebook. 

He's been at it all morning. Writing down what he's going to say, saying it to a mirror so he can practice his facial expressions, walking back to his desk, and starting over. I personally think his first draft was fine. 

"Will, I love you." He says before smacking his forehead. "No. You can't say that. That's weird. Will, you are smart and pretty and I like you. But not as a friend. Wait, no. I mean, yes, but— argh!" He throws his pen on the floor and pulls his hair as he paces around his cabin.

"Stop overthinking it!" I yell to him from the vent. He freezes. "Jason, are you in my vent?"

"Well, I wouldn't have to be if you would just follow my suggestions!" I have suggested to him multiple times to install a perv perch. A sturdy shelf for me to sit on so I will no longer need to perv in a vent. 

"Jason! Get out of— actually," Nico pauses. "Come help me. Or I'll tell Chiron you're being creepy."

"Nico, I don't really know if I should help." I say.

"Please?" Nico looks up to me with what most people would call puppy eyes, but those are just Nico's normal eyes. "You're so good at being lame and I'm not!" 

Oof. There it is. I knew there was an insult coming. 

"Fine." I sigh, taking the pen from him and thinking about how short he is. I need to get him some heels. 

I finish writing a few minutes later. 

When Nico’s done reading what I wrote and almost vomits. "Jason, what the Hades? We're fifteen!" 

He then proceeds to kick me out of his cabin.

 

Nico POV

Jason has a problem. He keeps begging me to install a 'perv perch' which I just... I can't even imagine. I'll give him this, though. He made me much more comfortable in my writing abilities. It might sound like I'm being creepy and weird, but at least I'm not talking about stuffing my underwear with ham and seeing how Will reacts. 

I swear, Jason's usually so level headed and reasonable. But when Will and I get involved, he just becomes a different person. A disgusting, creepy person. 

I grab one of my initial drafts and walk to the infirmary, throwing away Jason's paper as I close the door.

 

Will POV

"Will! Will! Guess what!" Jason screams as he runs into the infirmary. 

"What?" I ask. Usually when Jason acts like this, it's about Nico. And I'm not one to turn down an opportunity to talk about Nico. 

"Nico's in love with you!" Jason squealed. I laugh. 

"Yeah, I wish." I respond, shaking my head. 

"Wish what?" Asks a voice at my side.

"Gods, Nico!" I say. "You can't just shadow travel next to me like that!" 

"I didn't." Nico says. "I came in through the door." He points to the infirmary door, which is still closing. I guess he's just eerily quiet. 

"What do you wish?" He asks.

"That you have a crush on him!" Jason squeals. 

I clamp my hand over Jason's mouth, but he licks it and I scream. I'm about to put in a gloves and cover Jason's mouth again, but I don't.

"But I do. You 'helped' me figure out how to tell him." Nico says to Jason, gesturing confusedly toward me, seemingly not noticing what he had just said. He likes me?

"You like me? Jason isn't a liar?" I ask.   
Nico's pale face gains a pinkish tinge. 

"Maybe. But if you don't like me, that's fine. I get it. I'm weird. Wait, no. That sounds weird. Im using that word so much. This is awful. I'm sorry. I-" 

"You should've filled your panties with ham." Jason says. "Then Will would have been aroused. Now he's just grossed out." 

"I'm grossed out because of you, Jason!" I shriek. I can sew someone's arms back on and not blink, but this was too much.

Once we've pushed Jason out the infirmary, locked the door, washed our hands (we didn't want any Jason on them), and calmed down from our respective anxiety attacks, we sat next  to each other on an infirmary bed. 

"So," I say teasingly. "You like me?" 

Nico rolls his eyes. "What gave it away?" 

"I don't know," I respond. "Maybe the fact that you're holding a love letter." 

Nico groans and puts his head in his hands. "This is so embarrassing." 

"Yeah," I decide to mess with him for a moment. "I'd be pretty embarrassed if I just confessed my undying love to me." 

"Shut up." He murmurs. 

"However," I say, "I am not you. And I don't have an undying love for myself. Vanity is not my fatal flaw. It’s actually selflessness to a fault, but that’s not relevant.”

"I said shut up. I would storm out right now if that didn't mean seeing Jason in his creepy state."

"Why would you storm out?" I ask, raising an eyebrow.

"Because you know I like you and now it's weird." He says, his face scrunching up behind his hands. 

"Why is it weird?" I ask. I think I know why. Nico's never had anyone like him back before, (at least, not that he was aware of,) so he must not be reading the signs. 

"Because you don't like me that way." 

I take his hands away from his face and turn his head so his eyes are looking into mine.

"Nico, I've been flirting with you for a year. You walked in on me saying I wished you liked me. I didn't freak out when Jason said your cabin was covered in pictures of my biceps. Honestly, I didn't believe him. I still don't believe him. How would someone even get those pictures? I don't have large biceps! I'm a medic. And yeah, I'm hot, but my arms are completely normal. And another thing—" 

I pause and take a moment to try to remember what I was thinking about. All demigods go off in ridiculous tangents, but it's still annoying.

"Anyway," I continue once I remember what I was saying. "I obviously like you. And you like me, too. So we're a couple now. No objections." 

"Not a problem." Nico responds. "I don't have any."


	5. Confidence

"Okay, okay. Just go through it with me one more time." Will asked, still not getting it. 

"You need to stand like this," Nico said, standing behind Will and adjusting his stance. "Shift your weight onto your left leg." 

"Like this?" Will shifted his weight as Nico had instructed. 

"Perfect. Now you just need to keep practicing."

 

Earlier in the day, Chiron had announced that demigods these days needed to get better at sword fighting. He said that in order to make sure everyone practiced more, he would set a camp-wide goal. 

Whoever wins a duel at the end of the month would get a reward. A CHB bead that says 'I won it.' That was Annabeth's idea. She said it was good because you could use it more than once since it was so vague.

Will didn't even really care about the bead. He had been at camp for a long time, and he's been to craft stores. Between those two things, he's got beads for days. 

But he wasn't going to miss a chance to hang out with Nico. Getting better at fighting was a bonus, be guessed, but he didn't even care about that. 

Nico was one of the best fighters in Camp Half Blood. So of course, Chiron decided to reward his success by making him do more work. Will immediately signed up.

 

Will groaned from the floor as Nico wiped dust off his hands. "You're never going to win if you don't start adjusting your stance. Follow my lead." 

Nico stood in a way that implied he was about to kill an army of drones and still look good. He raised an eyebrow. "Will, your sword is upside down."

"Does it matter?" Will asked. "Both sides are pointy." 

Nico took a deep breath. "I wouldn't point it out if it didn't matter. Now get up. Let's try again." 

He stuck his hand out and Will took it, getting up. "Okay. I'm ready to try again."

A few minutes later, Will found himself pinned against the wall, a sword to his throat for the fifth time that day. "Ugh. Fine. You win again. Chiron's reward is yours, I guess." 

Nico lowered his sword but didn't unpin Will from the wall. He moved his face close. "May I kiss you?" He asked. 

Will just stared at him for a moment before processing the question and nodding his head vigorously. Their lips connected. 

When the kiss was over, Will stood there, stunned as Nico walked away. 

"That wasn't...." Will mumbled to himself, his face still pink, "That wasn't the reward." 

Not that he was complaining.


	6. Daddy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adult demigods bond over brunch until Nico accidentally reveals a secret about his and Will’s personal life.

Nico, Will, Piper, Jason, Hazel, and Percy were all sitting at an outdoor table of a cafe. Ever since the wars had ended, they had started drifting apart, so Hazel decided that they would have bimonthly meetings to catch up. 

 

"Hades is the worst. He tried to kill me." Percy said.

"All the gods have tried to kill you. Plus, he didn't mean for you to die. He told me he forgot mortals need air to survive." Nico argued.

"No. He did not say that."

"Yeah." Piper inserted herself into the conversation. "Wouldn't he know all the ways humans can die? I mean, he's Hades for Zeus's sake!"

Nico sighed. "Look, Percy, Piper. I'll IM him." 

Nico threw a dramacha into the steam of the fountain near which they were sitting.

"Call dad." He spoke to the forming rainbow. 

'Calling Daddy.' The mist responded.

"No! No!" Nico swiped his hand through the mist, trying to cancel his call. It did not work. An Iris Message appeared in front of Will. 

A blush spread across Nico's face as he ran to the nearest shadow and shadow traveled away.

"This is awkward." Will stated, but no one could hear him over Hazel crying and Jason fanboying. 

"My brother has a boyfriend! And he's so cute! And surprisingly kinky." Hazel wailed. "I'm disturbed that he has him put down as 'Daddy' but I'm also happy for him but what the Hades?" 

No one could really understand what she was saying through the sobs, but they got the general idea.

Jason, meanwhile was yelling atop his chair. "Yes! I was right! Suck it, Percy. Nico is a bottom."

"Whatever." Percy grumbled as he passed Jason twenty dollars. 

"You guys were betting on who tops? That's so messed up!" Will complained. 

"Messed up?" Percy exclaimed. "You make your boyfriend call you Daddy!"

"I do not. He's the one who suggested we try it! And we both enjoyed it so-" 

"OH MY GODS!" Hazel screamed. "This is worse! My brother is a slut!"

"I mean, I'm the only one he's slept with, so he's not really a 'slut.' Even if he was, there's nothing wrong with enjoying sex! Stop kink-shaming." 

"WHAT?!? You've slept together?!" Hazel cried.

"Uh....yeah. We've been together for almost a year now, so... yeah. I thought you had figured that out based on the conversation we're having. Why else would he have me in his contacts as that?" 

"No other reason! Because you are a top, Baby!" Jason interrupted. 

"Daddy." Percy corrected.

Hazel passed out.


	7. Darlin’

"Come on." Will whined. "Part of being my boyfriend is going to stuff with me."

"Dang. I should've read the terms and conditions. Never would've hit accept." Nico said from the floor. 

"Ha ha. Now get up, we're going." Will took his grumbling boyfriend's hand and pulled him up.

"Why do we have to go?"

"To bond with our friends!”

"Bond? Were you raised by a 20-year-old frat boy? Keith Kogane, maybe?"

Will sighed exasperatedly. "I love you, Nico, but we need to go to this."

"Aw. You love me?"

"Please? I won't call you Darlin' for the whole time we're there." 

Nico hated loving that pet name. Every time Will said it, he became a blushing, stammering mess. It was so embarrassing. 

Nico got up and grabbed his jacket, sighing. "Fine. Let's go."

   
"Never have I ever stolen a car." Leo said, staring at Piper intensely as she took a drink. 

Out of the corner of his eye, Will also saw Percy take a drink. "It was my jackass ex-stepdad's car. He said my mom and I could use it, so we got it trampled by the Minotaur. He had it coming." 

Annabeth nodded in agreement. "My turn. Never have I ever chugged an entire bottle of liquid aminos, a soy sauce and vinegar tasting ingredient, to prove a point." 

Everyone immediately looked at Nico, who took a drink. He was drinking wine this time, not liquid aminos.

"Never have I ever... died!" Piper said, targeting Leo. Leo took a drink along with Percy, Annabeth, Nico, and Hazel. 

"Wait, guys. You've died? How did I not know about this?" 

"I did not shadow travel here from California to get questioned on my death." Hazel said, casually sipping her beverage.

"No," Piper said, "I know you and Leo died. But you?" She gestured to Annabeth, Nico, and Percy.

"When you go to Tartarus," Nico explained, "You technically die, since when you die you go to the underworld, and Tartarus is most commonly accessible through the underworld. I don't understand it."

"Sounds like you understand it."

"Piper, I think I would know if I knew."

"What?"

"Doesn't matter. My turn. Never have I ever... stolen my girlfriend's shoes to fill with jelly beans because Chiron said only one pack per person." Nico said, causing Percy to take a drink.

 

"Will, did you have a good time? Did you bond?" Nico asked, laying in bed next to his boyfriend. 

"I did. Also, now I know Percy is disgusting. Shoes are unsanitary AF. So there's that. Did you have fun?" 

"No, not at all." 

Will moved his face closer to Nico's. 

"Fine.” Nico admitted, “Maybe a little. But only because you were there." 

"Dork."

"Med-head."

"Darlin'."


	8. Dates

"That's nothing, child." Annabeth said. "Sit down." She pushed Percy back onto my floor. 

Why the meetings were always in my cabin, I had no idea. I certainly hadn't invited them to come in and talk about the worst dates they'd ever been on, yet they did it anyway. 

So far, Leo had talked about him meeting Khione, even though we kept insisting that wasn't a date. Jason had almost been killed on his first ever date with a girl named Kylie (she was a Mars child. What can ya do?) And Percy talked about how his worst date ever was when he found out Rachel was allergic to blue food dye. 

"Anyway.... what about you?" Percy looked at Piper expectantly. 

"Well," Piper started, "Once I went on a date with this Hecate camper, Donnie, and—"

"Oh my gods! I used to date Donnie!" Will exclaimed. Everyone looked at me anxiously. 

"What?" I asked. 

Percy looked around the room and upon noticing that no one else was going to step up and take initiative, he sighed. "Nico, Will's been with someone who isn't you." 

Do they think I'm this stupid? Of course Will had dated other people. He accepted being queer way before I did.

I sighed. "Percy, can we please get back to the game." 

Piper started again. "So, Donnie was a magician. For his 'first trick,'" She put this in air quotes. "He pulled a bird out of his pocket. For his second trick, he snapped his fingers and we were engulfed in a haze of, well, haze. And when the smoke was gone..." She looked around the room for dramatic effect. "He was naked."

"Oh yeah!" Will said. "I forgot he did that. Man, pepper spray has never been better."

"Were you two on the date at the same time, or did he just do that twice." I asked. 

"Twice." Will confirmed.

"So," Jason continued what Percy was saying a moment ago, "Nico, you're fine with Will dating other people?" 

I sighed again. "He's not dating them at the moment, guys. My boyfriend isn't cheating on me. Chill."

"Yeah!" Will said. "That was before Nico even knew about me." 

"You knew about me, though?" I asked.

"Nico, please. You're you. Of course I noticed you." He replied, kissing my forehead. 

"But, Nico." Percy said again. It's as if he's trying to break us up. "Will's broken people's hearts before. How do you know he won't break yours?" 

I just stared at him for a moment. Will opens his mouth to speak, but closes it again. Over and over again, like a fish, before finally speaking. "Dude, what the actual Hades? I'm not going to break up with Nico."

"So you're going to marry him?" Jason raised an eyebrow. 

Will blushed and stammered before standing up and walking into my cabin's bathroom. He stayed in there for about five minutes, giving me plenty of time to yell at my 'friends' about why in Hades' Helm they would do that. 

"We want to make sure he's right for you." Percy said. 

"Um, don't put me into this." Jason said. "I'm doing this to prove to Percy that he's perfect." 

"Either way," I said. "You guys need to shut up.”

Will walked out of my bathroom looking much calmer than when he went in. When he's stressed, he lays on the floor and does yoga. By yoga, I mean he lays on a yoga mat and doesn’t move. 

He doesn't trust people to be around him when he's vulnerable, so I put a yoga mat in my bathroom so he can go there when he needs to. I mean, he trusts me, but these people come over uninvited all the time.

Will, only a few steps out of the bathroom, stopped and looked at Percy. "Stay in your lane, boy." Oh my gods. This is why I'm in love with him.

   
"Hey, Neeks? Will asked me, his arm wrapped around my chest. 

Yes, I'm a little spoon, and while there’s nothing wrong with that, it’s personal, so if you tell anyone, I will make sure you never have the chance to tell again. Because you'll be dead. Just so that's clear.

"Yeah?" I responded, concerned at his anxious tone. 

"You know I'm not going to leave you, right?" His voice sounded so tiny. 

I turned around to face him. "Will, I know you're never going to leave me. I love you. I love you more than life itself, and I know you feel the same way about me. And don't worry." I said, putting my arms around his shoulders. "I won't let you get away from me."


	9. Enrique

"There is no way I have that. I'm just wearing seven pairs of pants." Piper stopped for a moment to think, "Plus, since I'm wearing so much clothing, I couldn't have caught the disease." 

Almost everyone in camp was sick. It started with Enrique, who was, and Will did not use the term lightly, a slut. There was nothing wrong with that, but there was a problem with Enrique constantly lying to his doctor, Will. 

Enrique, son of Priapus, had gotten an STD and somehow turned the illness airborne. Now pretty much everyone had it. It caused your butt and legs to swell, your chest to hurt, and it caused extreme testicular pain.

Piper obviously was ill. No one wears that many pairs of pants. So Will gave her a shot, and she left. Lots of other campers denied that they had it. How stupid did they think Will was? 

“No, Jason,” Will had had to say, “you do not have a bubble butt. You have an inflamed butt.”

“No, Valentina, you do not have mumps. You are vaccinated.”

“No, Grover, you aren't going to die from this.”

“No, Sherman, you can't just walk it off.”

“No, Drew, it won't affect your beauty in the long term.”

‘These people, I'm telling you.’ Was a thought Will had had several times today.

Enrique was happy to get the shot. And he said so.

"I'm usually a top, but this is nice." He said.

‘What the Hades?’ Will thought, ‘Why would he say that?’

"This isn't sexy, Enrique."

"I love the feeling of needles in my ass."

Will sighed. ‘Oh gods. Apollo give me strength.’ 

"Let me do you, then you can go. And please, stop spreading diseases." 

"Let me do you? That's what she said." 

Will tried to give him the shot, but Enrique kept 'flirting' so Will was forced to call for backup.

Backup consisted of Kayla and Austin. 

"Hold him down!" Kayla screamed as Enrique squirmed and writhed beneath them. 

‘And I thought I was a drama queen.’ Will thought, rolling his eyes.

When Will inject him with the medicine, Enrique began moaning. "Oh yeaaaahhhh." 

Will suddenly understood why people committed murder. 

 

"I still think we could have something special." Enrique said as he started to leave. He said it so casually, as if he hadn't just cause that scene. "I mean, I'm hot, you're smart, together we would be unstoppable." 

He leaned into Will seductively. 

"I have a boyfriend," Will replied.

"Oh, baby, he doesn't have to know." 

Nico walked in. "What the Hades, Enrique?" 

"Oh, yeah. Your boyfriend was just leaving you." Enrique said as Will shook his head. 

"Was he now? You know, come here and I'll tell you how I won him over." 

Enrique walked over to Nico, only for Nico to punch him in the stomach. 

Will sighed and walked out of the infirmary. He certainly wasn’t going to deal with Enrique again today. That was someone else’s problem now.


	10. Failed

"Pipeeeeeer." I whine.   
"What?"   
"It didn't go well." Piper has been setting me up with guys for ages. Ever since I told her I was gay. She made a YouTube channel called 'Nico's failed dating attempts.' When she told me the name I was like "Do you have that little faith in me?" And she was like "yes." 

So, yeah. She's been setting me up with different guys recently. Some of them are pretty cool, but they don't seem to like me very much. The first guy I went on a date with was named Brandon. He ended up being a straight woman named Brandy and so it didn't work out very well. She said that if I prayed we could be something special. I left. Piper filmed it and put it online. She said people love it. She said that next time, I should be myself and say something nice. I told her those two things don't go hand in hand.

The next guy was named Charles. He was actually a guy, which was nice. I ended up talking about blood and I scared him off. He was really cute, too. 

Piper suggested that next time, I should act like Reyna and do what she would do.   
"Hello." I said. "I'm named Reyna. I am a sixteen year old girl/woman and I have a secret girlfriend. I have two dogs, each one made of precious metals, and I am praetor of New Rome. Daughter of Bellona, I am so strong." He left before I finished saying that. I went on at least ten more dates and creeped out every single boy. Piper told me to go on one more date. I had given up, so I agreed.

"Hi. I'm Nico. I like dead bodies."  
"Like..... sexually?" Will asked  
"No."  
"Oh, good. Because you're cute and I'm alive. On the outside, at least. I prefer living bodies. Or at least bodies that still have flesh. They're easier to diagnose. Just like, this body's missing a head! But did it come off before or after he turned into a skeleton?" I nodded.   
"Yeah. So you're a doctor? Do you usually work on dead people?"  
"Not often. Most of my patients are alive. Are you a doctor?"   
I shook my head. "No. I'm an author, I write books. Books. Stuff like that. Ya know, books." He smiled. "Oh my god! You are so cute! I can't believe I don't freak you out, I freak everyone out, but I'm so happy about it!" He paused. "Am I oversharing?"   
"Not really. I've been on a ton of dates because my friend Piper bribed me. Everyone found me creepy. By the way, Piper's sitting behind you. Hey, Piper." Piper, who was filming me from behind Will, waved. "I'm weirder than you. I don't mind." I told him. "I like you too. Want to come over to my house tomorrow? We could watch a movie." He's absolutely beaming. "I'd love to!"


	11. Fairy

AN///Everyone is 18+.

Nico never should've agreed to this. You don't bet against Will Solace and win. Will warned him this, but Nico had had no doubt in his mind that he would emerge victorious. Long story short, Nico did not emerge victorious.

"I bet you that by midnight tonight, Annabeth will have worked together with Percy and Piper to steal Chiron's sour candies. And then they'll sneak back to their cabins, and Chiron will get a lock for his sour candies." Will had said the week before. He and Nico were eating breakfast, watching Annabeth, Piper, and Percy whispering in a corner.   
"I'll take that bet. What do I get if I win?" Nico asked.  
"Um, I don't know. If you win, I'll do all your cabin's chores for a month."  
"Wow. High stakes. What if you win?"  
Will smiled mischievously. "You have to dress as a fairy on Halloween next week."

Nico considered this. What were the odds that Will was right about what Percy, Piper, and Annabeth were whispering about? The likelihood of them planning to steal Chiron's candies, tonight, by midnight, and then successfully sneaking away, causing Chiron to buy a lock, was very small. And not having to do chores for a month was a good offer.   
"Deal."

Nico was very much regretting making that deal. He fiddled with his dress as Will grinned.  
"Solace, I swear, one comment about the outfit and I will end you."  
"But you look so pretty," Will walked over to him and put his arm around Nico's shoulders. "And oh. My. Gods. You have a little wand!"  
"Shut up."  
"You're so cute!"  
"Let's get this over with."

"Love, do you want some punch?" Will asked.  
"I want to punch you," Nico responded.  
"That's not a very fairy-like attitude."  
"Go fuck yourself."  
"No. I don't think I will. That's what I've got you for."  
"You sound like a horny frat boy. Reel it in."  
"Yeah, you're right. Sorry. I thought you would think it was hot." Will rubbed the back of his head. "I feel bad about saying it now but I thought of it and I just had to say it. I'm going to go get us some punch."

"Hey baby," Nico heard. He turned around, about to punch a guy, when he had an idea. Looking back on this day, he would see that this was maybe not the best idea.   
"Hey," Nico flirted back. If Will was going to force him to wear this costume, Nico was going to be petty. "Hey, Justin. How are you?" Nico took a step closer to him. He could smell the axe body spray clinging to Justin's skin.   
"I'm fine, babe. How are you? If your outfit is any indicator, you're doing just fine."  
Deep breaths, Nico. Deep breaths. Don't vomit.

Nico wanted to punch him. But he also wanted to make Will jealous. So instead of punching, he giggled. Nico Di Angelo fucking giggled.   
"Did you just..... giggle?" Justin asked, a smirk on his face.

Nico looked across the pavilion at Will. Will was holding two cups of punch and looking at Nico like, 'why are you flirting with Justin?' He angrily walked over, followed by Jason.  
"Hey, Nico. Justin. What's going on here?" Will asked as Jason stood behind him, making obscene hand gestures.   
"Your 'boyfriend' was just about to leave you, medic."  
"You're a dick, Justin."  
"That wasn't what your mom said last night."   
"What? I don't- what? Why are you flirting with my boyfriend?"   
"He likes it, don't you, baby?" 

Okay. This had gone too far. Nico didn't want this to happen. He wanted to make Will a little jealous, just a little bit, by flirting with another guy. Will was far more jealous than Nico had intended, and Justin was being a creep. Nico had called Will a horny frat boy earlier that night, but that was nothing compared to Justin. Nico needed to put an end to this. He was about to tell Justin to back off. He was about to explain to Will what was going on.   
But then Justin out-did himself. He touched Nico's thigh. 

Will flipped out. "Get away from him! If you don't, I swear on the Styx that I will end you. I will kill you and it will be slow and painful. I will make you regret ever coming to Camp, because being eaten alive by carnivorous monsters will be a better fate than what will happen to you if you ever touch my boyfriend again! I swear to every known god, if you even so much as look at him, you will die at my hands. You will die a terrible, agonizing death, and it will be at my hands." 

"Damn." Justin said, trying to hide his fear behind a cocky smile. "Okay, bro. Chill." He slowly backed away. Will looked satisfied for a moment before remembering something. He turned his fiery gaze onto the dark haired boy beside him. "Nico, can we go to your cabin?"

"You were trying to make me jealous and you succeeded. Unfortunately, you also made me angry. Why were you flirting back with Justin? He had no right to touch you, don't get me wrong, but why did you flirt back? You fucking giggled."

Nico sat on his bed as Will went back and forth between being angry at Nico and concerned for Nico. His emotions ranged from 'omg how dare you' to 'I can't believe Justin touched you how can I help? to 'why would you do this' to 'I will murder him.' Will made one thing very clear. He was angry at Nico for flirting with Justin, but he in no way blamed Nico for Justin touching him. After Will said all of this, he walked into Nico's bathroom and laid on the floor. "The pain of existence," Will groaned. "And the pain at how tacky this bathroom is. A black towel? Where did you get this Gerard Way flavored conditioner? Hot topic?"  
"Trader Joe's."  
"Why did you want to make me jealous? And why did you buy this conditioner? Why does it say flavored instead of scented? What does Gerard Way taste like to begin with?"  
"Well, for the last question, the conditioner tastes like soap."  
"Why would you eat it?"  
"Unimportant. For the first question, when you're jealous, you get kinda territorial and it's really hot. For the third question, I have no idea. And for the second question, I bought it because I had a coupon for Trader Joe's."  
"Why does Trader Joe's sell this? It doesn't- wait. You think I'm hot when I'm jealous?"  
"Um," Nico said, "I did not mean to say that. I mean, it's true, but saying it out loud was a mistake."  
"Just like this conditioner." 

Will got up off the floor and walked over to his boyfriend. He sat down, scooting very close to Nico, so that their faces were almost touching.   
"You think I'm hot?" Will half asked, half said, in a teasing voice.   
"Yes, Solace, I think you're hot. This has already been established."   
"I don't think it's been established enough."  
"What are you saying?" Nico asked, not wanting to assume the wrong thing.   
"I'm saying that you think I'm hot, and I think you're hot, and you look really cute in that costume. But you'd look cuter without it."


	12. Fake Injuries

Will's POV   
It's a slow day in the infirmary. I'm content, humming Hamilton songs and stocking nectar. But soon my peace is interrupted.   
"Will!" Percy screamed as he runs through the infirmary door. "My skin! It's..." He pauses dramatically for effect. "Blue!" I sigh and turn around. Percy's skin is, in fact, blue.   
"Why, Percy?" I ask. I figure he's messing with me, but since his skin's blue, I might as well make sure.   
"I ate so much blue food, that—" I walk up to him with a wet wipe and press it against his face.   
"Percy," I explain as if I'm speaking to a preschooler, "This is paint. What is wrong with you?" It's at this moment when Rachel bursts through the door. I like Rachel. She, Reyna, and Nico made a club called the, 'I had a crush on Percy but he's an idiot and somehow couldn't tell.' club. It's a mouthful. I just call it the IHACOPBHAIASCT. Again, a mouthful. 

"Percy!" Rachel yells. "Did you take my blue paint again?" Percy glances from side to side, looking as if he'd rather be anywhere but here. He looks to me for support, and I give him a look like, 'You got yourself into this mess, buddy."  
"No." He says this as more of a question, his voice going higher toward the end of the word. Rachel grabs his wrist and pulls a complaining Percy out of the infirmary. Thank the gods. Time to get some actual work done.

Turns out I'm not getting any work done. As soon as Percy left, Piper came in. "Doctor! Doctor!" She wails.   
"Oh, gods!" I panic. She's so convincing. I guess that's what charmspeak does, but that doesn't mean I like it. "What's wrong?" I ask her, ushering her into a room.   
"I grew a third nipple!" She sobs. I snap out of the charmspeak almost immediately.   
"Can you show me your third nipple? I can remove it." I say, slipping into doctor mode.   
"Yes," She says pulling up her pant leg. There's a chocolate chip taped on her shin.   
"Piper," I ask, "Is this the nipple?" She sniffles and nods. "Piper, I don't know how to say this. But you're an idiot. This is a chocolate chip." I tear off the tape and put it, along with the chip, into the trash. "Have you ever seen a nipple?"  
".....No?" She shrugs.   
"Get out."

The rest of the day is somehow just as terrible. All I want to do is take inventory of bandages, but I haven't even been able to count one box. People keep running in pretending to be injured. 

"Will!" Leo screams frantically. "My hand's on fire!"   
"Leo, you're fireproof. Turn off your hand and get out of my infirmary." I say.

"Will. I'm hurt." Jason limps in. He looks so sincere.   
"Oh no. What's wrong?"   
"I kicked a stump." He groans, his face contoured in pain.   
"A stump?" I ask. I figure I must've misheard him. By now I've figured out what's going on. The campers are bored and are having a contest to see who can bother me the most. But a stump? Jason's so boring when he's not being a perv.  
"Yeah," Jason responds. "But you'd never guess what was in the stump. Wood."   
"Wow. Wood. In a stump. Made of wood. Who would've guessed?" I say in a monotone voice as I touch Jason's foot. "Your foot isn't injured. Just take some ibuprofen." I hand him the pills and push him out of the infirmary. 

I groan and plop my head onto the hard counter top. All day, people have been coming in here with their fake injuries. At least now I can sort the syringes. I smile and start sorting the needles by size (insulin needles are smaller than influenza shot needles. Mixing them up would be bad.) I'm glad that I can finally do something useful.   
"Will." I hear someone say, their voice disguised with (most likely pretend) pain. I snap.   
"What?! I am a doctor! I can't deal with you people and your fake injuries! Deal with your paper cuts on your own! Kicking stumps is nothing! I can't deal with you morons and your overreacting to every little thing! I don't have time for this! F off!" I say all this without turning around. "Oh." They say. "You're right, I'm sorry. I'm probably overreacting, I'll go." Wait. I recognize that voice. I turn around and see my boyfriend.   
"Oh, Nico." I smile nervously. Well, this is embarrassing. "Sorry. I thought you were Conner coming to say his bones disappeared again. What's up?"   
"No, you were right." He groans, clutching his side. "I'll just go to my cabin. Sorry for bothering you."   
"Nico," I say. "I always have time for you. What do you need?"   
"I'm fine." He insists, obviously not fine.  
"Nico. What is wrong?" I ask, but it's more of a command. I care about my boyfriend.   
"I'm fine." He says again. I squint at him with a death glare worse than his. "Fine." He says, using his free hand to point to his side. "I was stabbed." Oh dear gods! Stabbed? I rush him to  a bed and clean the stab wound before stitching it back up.

"Nico, I'm so sorry I yelled at you." I say, hugging him but making sure to not touch his stabbed side.   
"It's fine." Nico says, somehow not mad at me. "What I don't understand is what you were talking about. Were people faking being sick or something?" I nod. "Yeah." I tell him about everything that happened today. About how I'm not going to tell Chiron because I don't want them to get in trouble, but I also kinda want to push them into a ditch. 

"Any campers faking injuries will be forced to clean the Pegasus stables." Chiron announces during dinner the next day. Nico's sitting next to me, smirking. "Also," Chiron says, "Rachel Dare will be searching Percy's cabin for her paint. Enjoy your dinner."


	13. Fallen Out Of Love

Jason in a Vent POV  
"I'm not in love with you anymore. I'm sorry." Will says to him. Nico's eyes fill with tears. He tries not to let it show. He isn't going to play this twisted game of Will's. If he doesn't love him, fine. It's not like he needs Will to live. He is a strong person who has endured much worse than a stupid break up. I wonder why they're breaking up. Maybe Will spends too much time in the infirmary? No, because he's the one dumping Nico. Maybe Nico is clingy? Sound like Nico, all right. I can't tell you how many times a week he approaches me just to talk. 'Jason, you're blocking the door. Please move.' 'Jason, what the Hades are you doing in my closet?' 'Get out of my cabin, Jason.' 'Jason, why are you under my bed?' 'Jason, I'm calling the police on you.' 'Jason, Chiron's asking for you.' 'Jason. I'm going to kill you if you hide in my laundry basket again.' He's so needy. Maybe I should be the one breaking up with him. Nah, who am I kidding? I love the attention.   
I hear Will laughing. "I'm sorry! I can't do it!" Nico laughs along, "You're so bad at this game! All you have to do is pretend to break up with me without laughing! It shouldn't be that hard!"   
"Fine. You try."  
Nico cleared his throat. "Will. We're done." "You're smiling! That counts as laughing!" Will screamed excitedly.  
Nico groaned. "This game is so stupid. I don't think it's 'strengthening our mutual respect for blue food.' Why did you accept the game from Percy, again?"   
"He offered and sounded so excited and I couldn't say no. Fight me. Anyway, neither of us could dump the other, so the Answer booklet says 'player a will die in a fire in six days. Player b will live a long, empty life, knowing that they could have saved person a if they were only with them.'"   
"What the Hecate? Let me see." Nico took the pamphlet from him. "Huh. It actually says that. Damn. No wonder Percy wanted to get rid of it."   
It just now occurs to me that they're playing a game. A weird, twisted break up game. Worse than Monopoly. At least they didn't break up. I let out a cheer of celebration "WOOOHOOO!"   
"Jason, get out of here before I make you."  
See what did I tell ya? Needy.


	14. Fear

I sigh as the rain pours down on my head, making my hair get in my eyes. This must be how Nico sees the world, I think, holding back a laugh. Speaking of Nico, where is he? Maybe he just doesn't like the rain. The weather usually doesn't get into camp, but today Chiron decided the Pegasi would like the shower and the strawberries needed watering. So he let in the storm. 

I try to enjoy myself, after all, rain doesn't come into camp often, but I can't. I just keep worrying about where Nico is. I know I don't need to be nervous, he's just being antisocial. But I can't shake the feeling that something's wrong. So I go to check on him, feeling silly at my concern. 

I'm about to knock when I hear a whimper coming from inside. "Nico?" I ask. He doesn't respond. Oh gods, what if he's injured? "Nico, are you alright?" I hear a whine from the person I assume is him. I can't see through the door, but Nico's the only one in his cabin, so unless he got a pet..... "Nico, It's Will, your boyfriend. I'm coming in." I open the door and see a bundle of blankets sitting on Nico's bed. I walk over and sit next to him, wrapping the shaking bundle in my arms. "Go away." Says Nico the blanket blob. I let go of the bundle, but I don't exactly go away. I just sit there in case Nico needs anything. 

After a few minutes, he pokes his head out and puts it on my lap. I rub my fingers through his hair. "What's wrong Darlin'?" I ask. "I'm fine." Nico whispers in a hoarse voice. "No offense," I say, "But you obviously aren't fine. You're inside your cabin, away from everyone, having an anxiety attack under your blanket." Nico takes a deep breath. "Lightning killed my mother. Zeus was mad because Hades liked her, so her killed her. He tried to kill Bianca and I, too, but we survived. Now whenever I hear thunder or see lightning I go into a panic. It's embarrassing." He timidly looks up at me to see my reaction. Based on his expression, I'd say he thinks I'm going to hate him. When will he learn that I'll love him no matter what? Nothing can change that.   
"Thanks." Oops. I must've said that aloud. "I love you, too."   
"I'm so sorry that happened to you, Neeks. And I know I can't fix what happened to you, but I'm here now. So I can help you deal with the aftermath." He sits up and opens up his blanket cocoon. "Wanna cuddle?" I smile, crawling into the blankets with him. "I'd love nothing more."


	15. Flags

Nico just narrowly escaped the crowd. Campers running in every which direction, collecting supplies to take what was rightfully theirs. Chiron had announced that the big house needed to be repainted, and everyone had to help.  
"However," he added "Whoever creates the best Camp Half Blood flag will get to sit out on this day. You have 36 hours to design and construct your flag. 1 submission per cabin." 

Nico had a dark secret. He made flags in his free time. He could win this contest easily, but then everyone would know. He was thinking about his predicament when Will knocked at his window. Nico opened it for his boyfriend to climb in.  
"Nico." He whispered. "I need help." Nico nodded solemnly as he moved his bed to reveal a secret room. "Come on."

Will could barely believe his eyes. He knew Nico made flags, but he had no idea the extent of his flag obsession. On the walls of the underground room were flags folded perfectly, put gently in frames.   
"Woah." Will spoke softly. "You made all these?"  
"Yes." Nico responded, walking over to his sewing machine. "What kind of flag do you need?"

 

"And, you're quite certain that you didn't get any help?" Chiron questioned suspiciously. Kayla and Will nodded eagerly as Chiron held up the beautiful Apollo flag. It was a gorgeous flag, black as night and serene as a glistening pond. The design looked as if it was made of pure gold, a Pegasus glittering in the warm sunlight. It was even more gorgeous than the Athena flag. Chiron was ready to announce the winner.

Everyone presented their flags. Hephaestus's shot lasers at random bystanders. The Ares cabin's was made entirely of pulled pork. Nico's was a grey towel taped onto a stick. He used minions duct tape for the top. Staples were sticking onto the bottom half, along with crime scene tape.  
"Nico," Chiron asked, "Why do you have crime scene tape?"  
"Don't ask if you don't want to know the answer." Nico responded. 

"Nico?" Will whispered to his boyfriend. "Why does your flag suck? You're great at making flags?"  
"That's a secret. You're the only one who knows about my flags." Will felt honored that Nico trusted him with this. "Plus," Nico added, "This competition is stupid. Let's go vote for our favorite!"

"And the winner is..... The Hades Cabin! Wait, what?" Chiron announced. Everyone groaned and shouted.   
"I object!" Nico shouted. "I made that flag bad on purpose! Why did any of you idiots vote for it?" He knew why. If you had to vote for a flag that wasn't your own, pick one that no one else could possibly like. It was a smart idea. However, almost every camper had the same idea. So they all decided to burn it. 

"Burn it! Burn it!" They all chanted as Leo lit it on fire. But the towel and stick did not burn it. That heinous minions duck tape did not burn. It. Did. Not. Burn. And everyone was horrified. How dare this monstrosity exist? How dare Nico create it? Why would it not burn? "Oh," Nico said, "Yeah. It never fully dries. I found it in an abandoned apartment in Brooklyn. There's more to that story, but I don't feel like going into detail right now. I'll just make a good flag. It'll take me, like, an hour. Be right back." 

True to his word, Nico came back about forty minutes later with the most beautiful flag.   
"Wow!" Will exclaimed. "That's even prettier than the flag you made from our cabin!" The look of realization spread across his face as he fully processed what he had just said. The rest of the Apollo cabin groaned in frustration as Chiron stamped his hoof and shouted, "I knew it!"


	16. Ghosted

"Okay, guys. Go play!" Will's students ran off in all directions, jumping into slides and swings and other playground equipment. Will loved being an elementary teacher. He loved his students. Sometimes it could be hard, if a kid was a dick or if, even worse, their parent was a dick. It was hard when kids needed help and parents denied it. Just because they wanted their kid to be "normal." It made Will feel sick. But other than that, he loved his job. He loved the kind of things children would say. He had this student who had a really high pitched voice and called the other kids feather-brains. His name was Jordan. He had a group of mean girls who followed him everywhere.  
"Come on, girls," He would say. Will found it interesting that cliques could form so early.

"Mr. Solace?" One of his students asked.   
"Yes, Avery? Is everything okay?"  
"There's a strange man standing over there. He's scaring me." 

Will looked over to where she was pointing. In the graveyard next to the school. Will had no idea why they would put a school next to a graveyard. Maybe they wanted to teach the young children about death. Maybe the land there was really cheap. Maybe whoever built the school was supposed to build it somewhere else, and just messed up a little bit on the placement of the building. 

Will looked out onto the graveyard. "I don't see anyone. What does he look like?"  
"He looks scary."  
"Okay, but can you describe him more? Use adjectives."  
"He's short and and whiteish and angry and creepy."   
Will didn't see anyone. "Are you joking, Avery? I don't see anyone?"   
"He's really there! Ugh!" Avery stormed off. 

The next day, Will did see something. A man, standing in the place Avery had pointed to yesterday. He was short and pale. And he was definitely creepy.   
"Excuse me, sir. What are you doing here?"   
The man looked over to him.   
"The cemetery is closed on weekdays and you aren't authorized to be by the school. What are you doing?" 

The man looked around before raising his eyebrows and pointed to himself in a 'who, me?' kind of way.   
"Yeah, you. What are you doing here? I will call the police." 

Will blinked, because that's something people do. People blink. That's a fact of life, readers. You have to learn to except this at one point or another.

Will blinked, and the man was gone. 

The next day or Saturday. While he would normally never spend a Saturday in a creepy graveyard next to the school, today was not a normal Saturday. Today was a Saturday in which Will would get to the bottom of the mystery. Who was the man standing in the graveyard, watching the children? Maybe he would be there today. Maybe he was only there because he was not allowed to be, as the cemetery with only open on weekends. Even if the man wasn't there today, Will might be able to find a granola bar wrapper or a soda can that the man may have left behind. 

"Can I..... help you?" A voice from behind Will said. He turned around and saw the man. Will was not at all ashamed to admit that he screamed.   
"Woah. Calm down, pill."  
"Pill?"  
"I died in the twenties. This is the most recent slang I know."  
"Died?"  
"Is there an echo here? Yes, Mr. Solace. I died. I'm a freaking ghost."  
"A ghost?"  
"Wow, there really is an echo. Wouldn't have guessed. Yes, a ghost."  
"How did you know my name was Mr. Solace?"  
"I've heard your students talk about you. The world has progressed so much in the last 100 years. Benito Mussolini has been killed. Did you know that people of color can go into the same places as white people? It's amazing!" The ghost looked Will up and down, scanning him with his eyes.  
"Well, I guess you probably knew all that. But I only found out a few years ago when the school was built and I overheard some history stuff."  
"Yeah, the world sure has gotten better. And that's only elementary school level history."  
The ghost shook his head slowly. "Horsefeathers. That's so great. I wish I could learn more about the world. About how it's changed."

Will didn't expect himself to say anything to this. He certainly didn't expect himself to say what he said. "I could teach you. Can you leave this graveyard? We could go get some ice cream or something and I could tell you all about the world."   
The ghost smiled sadly. "I can, but.... are you sure? I don't want to be a bother or an extra responsibility you have to take care of."  
"It's no bother. You seem like a nice person. Er, ghost."   
"If you're sure.... Then I'd love to."

So far Nico had gotten excited about how many cars there were (he kept calling them automobiles), how much money ice cream costs ($6.75 isn't as much as it used to be), and how you could legally buy liquor at every grocery store. 

"If it's easy for you to leave the graveyard, why haven't you left before?"  
"How did you know I haven't left?"  
"You obviously haven't seen modern civilization in a long time. You screamed when the door opened itself."  
"Because it was scary!"  Nico waved his arms around frantically. "Doors shouldn't do that!"  
"You're a ghost."  
"Yes, this has been established. I am a ghost who is afraid of self opening doors."  
"I'm going to try not to judge you. But anyway, how did you not leave the cemetery for 90-something years?"  
"Didn't have a reason to. I felt like I got enough information through the kid's jabber. So what do you know about how the world has changed?"  
So what do you know about what's changed in the world?"

"Wow." Nico said an hour or two later. "That's..... Wow."  
"Yeah. The world has never been a perfect place."  
"It's getting better though, I think. People have more rights than they did when I was alive."  
"That's true. Did you like your ice cream?"  
"It was the berries, thank you."  
"Didn't you get chocolate?"  
"It's the berries is a phrase from the twenties that means it was good. The ice cream was good, thank you for buying it."   
"Oh! Great! Well I, um, I think you're the berries."  
"Thanks. I think you're the berries, too."


	17. Ghosted Part Two

"So, Nico," Percy asked, "What's your favorite meme?"  
"What's a meme?"  
"Will," Percy turned to Will, "Why did you bring a meme-hater into my home?"  
"No," Will explained, "He genuinely doesn't know what a meme is. He's the ghost I was telling you about."  
"You weren't joking?"  
"Did I look like I was joking?"  
"Okay, I guess not. So, you're dead? Cool."  
"What's a meme?" Nico asked again.  
"A meme is, well, a meme." Percy said.  
"Not helpful, Percy. Nico, a meme is a joke connected to an image that many people like. I'll pull one up."

Will took his phone from his pocket and typed a command. He held his phone out for Nico to see. "But," Nico said, "Trees don't wear pants."  
"That's the meme."  
"But they don't wear pants this way or that way. How is this funny?"  
"Here's a different one." Will pulled up a different meme.  
"Is that supposed to be a frog? Frogs don't look like that."  
"His name is Pepe. Here's another. This guy is telling you to perish."  
"He's just eyes."  
"This is a tide pod. Kids are eating them and dying."  
"Why?"  
"To be cool."  
"I had a friend who swallowed a live goldfish to be cool."  
"People did that?" Percy asked, sipping his lemonade.   
"Yeah, it was a big trend. Everyone wanted to swallow a fish. A lot of my friends blipped off. My friend Andrew was like, 'I'm going to swallow this fish.' And I told him, 'Andrew, don't be dumb.' And then he swallowed his goldfish and died."  
"That's gruesome." Will said, uncomfortable. Nico just shrugged. "People have always been dumb."

"Leo, this is Nico."  
"Sweet! You're the ghost, right?" Leo asked.  
"How many people did you tell?" Nico tugged at Will's sleeve.   
"Only three." Will said.  
Leo led them inside before launching into a story.

"So I wore the shirt even though it was see-through, because even though my girlfriend said it made me look ridiculous, I loved it. She said it made me look like a stripper and I was like 'who knows what I do when you're out of town?' And then she stared off into the distance as if she was evaluating her life choices."   
"Wow. That's a wild story. Especially when all I wanted know was where you got your shoes."  
"Oh, Target."

Will knocked. "Just so you know, Piper can be a bit much. She asks a lot of questions. Let me know if you need a break." The door opened.  
"Oh! Hey! You're Nico, right?"   
"Yes." Nico responded.   
Piper opened the door wider to let Nico and Will in. "Come on in! Sorry for the mess."

"So, are you really a ghost?" Piper asked, pushing a mound of papers of a chair and into the floor.   
"I am a ghost, yes."   
"What's it like? You can sit here, by the way."  
"Um," Nico said, sitting where the papers used to be. "I don't really know. Cold, I guess."  
"Being dead is cold?"  
"Applesauce, Piper, I don't know!"   
"What are some misconceptions about the twenty's?"  
"Um....." Nico said, looking around for answers. "Flappers? There were a lot less than books portray."  
"Um, Piper, can we slow down a little?" Will asked. Nico didn't hear. Neither did Piper because she was talking. 

Will knew that Nico was easily overwhelmed. Being dead will do that to you. 

"What else?" Piper asked over Will.  
"Uh, people said the bee's knees. But not as often as they do in old films. Like, it was a phrase, but not that common."  
"You've watched movies?"  
"Yes. Will showed me some. I really like Small Wonder."  
"Piper, Nico's going to get overwhelmed. He hasn't spoken to anyone in over eighty years." Will tried to say. Neither heard him.   
"What's Small Wonder?"  
"Can we take a break?" Will asked. No one heard him. Why the heck was Piper such a loud talker?  
"It's a tv show."  
"What happens in the show?"  
"I need to take a break. Sorry."   
"One more question."  
"Actually, I think I need to take a few minutes now."  
"What's your favorite thing that's changed?"  
"I need a break, please."  
"Piper, leave him alone." 

Nico got up and walked through the door, into Piper's bathroom.   
"He can do that? Walk through walls, I mean?"  
"He can only walk through doors. Not all doors, even. Just really, really thin doors made of pine wood."  
"Why?" Piper asked.  
"Piper, I get that you're curious. But Nico's overwhelmed. Can you chill?"  
"Sure. But I have a question for you."  
Will sighed. "Fine."  
"Do you love him?"  
"No more questions."

 

Will sat on the couch next to Nico. "What film are we watching tonight?" Nico asked, "Thanks for inviting me over, by the way. I like being in a house instead of a graveyard."   
"You can come over whenever you want, Nico." Will handed Nico some popcorn.   
"I know, and I appreciate that, but I don't want to bother you more than I already do."  
"You could never bother me. I adore you."  
"I adore you, too."   
"Oh, and tonight we're watching the Princess Bride." 

"Westley is hot." Will said. Nico gasped and looked frightened. "You can't say things like that, Will."  
"Say what?"  
"Say a man is hot. You're a man, too."  
"Men can love men, now. Did you not know that?"  
"They can?" Nico asked.  
"Absolutely. As long as you aren't related and you're both in the same age range. Some people still get mad, but most people don't care about other people's business."  
"So if I carried a torch for a man, you wouldn't hate me?"  
"No, of course not! I'll like you no matter what. Who is he? Do I know him?"  
Nico shrugged and ate a handful of popcorn. "Kind of."  
"Is it Piper?"  
"Piper is a Jane."  
"That means woman, right?"  
"Yeah."  
"Is it Percy?"  
"Percy's definitely a sheik. Not gonna lie. But no."  
"I don't know what that means. Is it Leo?"  
"No."  
"I don't know anyone else. Unless it's me." Will laughed. Nico didn't blush, because ghosts don't have blood. Although, if one went by what made sense, Nico wouldn't be able to eat or sleep either. And he did those things. Nico didn't blush, because ghost don't blush, but if he had been a human, he would have blushed like there was no tomorrow. His entire face would have been pink. But he was a ghost, so he didn't blush, he just laughed and went back to watching the movie.


	18. Ghosted Part Three

Oh my god. Nico likes me? Will thought. The ghost he was in love with loved him back. This.... wow. I bet he thinks he's being sly with the 'kind of' and the awkward laughing. He's so fucking cute! I need to properly ask him out. Okay. Deep breath. Here goes nothing.

"Hey.... Nico." Will said, "Do you want to go get coffee with me tomorrow? I could teach you more about history since you've died. Then maybe we could go on a walk in the park?"  
Nico smiled. "That sounds fun. Are you sure, though? I don't want to waste more of your time."  
"Time spent with you is never time wasted."  
"Then, sure. I'd love that." Nico turned his head back to the movie.

"These are way too many choices." Nico said, looking up at the coffee board. "What the horsefeathers?"  
"I'll order for us. Two iced lattes, please," He said to the barista. 

"Then, because of the stonewall riots and other important events, and by having pro-equality people in positions of power, gay marriage was legalized. Questions?"  
"So gay people can get married now. Can they also.... like..... um.... kiss? And stuff?"  
"Yes." Will said. "People can kiss in public and have sex in private."  
"Hmm. Okay. Neat." Nico took a sip of his latte. "This is really good. Much better than coffee was when I was alive."

"I had a really nice day with you. We should do this again." Will said, dropping Nico off at the graveyard next to the school.   
"I had fun, too. Bye, Will."  
"Bye, Neeks." 

A month or two later, Will lay on his bed, staring at the ceiling. He was happier than he knew he could be. He and Nico had been on several dates, each one better than the last. Tonight they were going to bar close to Will's house. Nico hadn't been to a bar before. He was excited. 

"Hey, baby," A man said to Nico at the bar, seemingly not noticing Will's arm wrapped around him.   
"Hello." Nico responded.  
"You come here often?"  
"No. This is my first time coming here."  
"You're hot."  
"You're making me feel uncomfortable."  
"Hey." Will said, "Dude. Stop flirting with my boyfriend."   
The man rolled his eyes and walked away.

Nico turned around abruptly. "What? Your boyfriend?"  
"Yeah? Do you not me to call you that? I could call you my date mate? Or my significant other."  
"Why would you call me any of those things?"  
"Because we're a thing? And I like you? I don't really know."  
"We're dating?" Nico looked very surprised. "How did I not know about this?"  
"Did you not know?" Will was equally confused. "We've been dating for a month now."  
"What? Oh my..... oh."

Nico thought back to the coffees and the walks. He thought about the time they went to a cat cafe, and he thought about the sunsets he and Will had watched together.

"Those were dates? Things make much more sense now."   
"You didn't know? Oh, god, Nico, I am so sorry. I must have made you so uncomfortable."  
"What? Are you joking? This has been the best month of my life, er, death. And that's been because of you. I'm not upset. I'm elated." 

Nico smiled and took Will's hand. "Boyfriends. I like that."


	19. Girlfriend

"So, Nico. When're you gonna get a girlfriend?" Percy asked from across the table. Nico raised an eyebrow and said in a monotone voice, "What." He said it in a way that wasn't really a question, more of a 'shut up before I make you through violence' thing.   
"C'mon, man. You're all alone. I've got Annabeth, Hazel's got Frank. When are you going to get someone special in your life?" Everyone turned their heads to look at Percy, wondering if he was being serious or if he was kidding. "Percy, I have a boyfriend." "Nico, you really shouldn't mock gay people. Reyna's not here, but she's still a person." Nico took a deep breath. "I'm not mocking gay people. I am a gay person. I am dating Will Solace. We are a gay couple." Will, who was stirring next to Nico, raised his hand. "I'm his boyfriend."

Percy was still confused ten minutes later. "Wait, wait. So you're in love with Will?"  
"Will and I are dating."  
"But you aren't in love with him?"  
"I.....fine. Yes. I'm in love with him." This made Will put his hand over his heart in a dramatic fashion.   
"So you're gay." "Yes, Percy. We've discussed this." "And you're smushing with Will?" "A gross way of putting it, but sure." "And so Will's gay, too?" "Will's bi." "And then—" "Percy, how did you not know this?" Jason interjected. "Nico told you he liked you a few years ago." "Well I had a lot going on at the time, Jason!" Percy exclaimed. "We had just defeated Gaea and I had to do the SATs and... Oh. Yeah, I remember now. Sorry everyone." He held his hands up in surrender then continued eating his eggs. 

"Mmmmm. So good." He moaned. "You almost can't tell it's a cooked chicken embryo." Hazel gagged and ran off to where Nico assumed was the bathroom. "Percy, why would you say that?" Will asked.

"You're a doctor, you understand that eggs are really-" "Just because something's true doesn't mean you should say it." "Like how you never said anything about dating Nico?" Will took a deep breath. Percy's friends had been doing that a lot lately. "Do you really not remember me ever mentioning this? Like last week for instance, you asked if I wanted to get a drink with you and Jason. I said, no thanks, I'm hanging out with my boyfriend." "Well how was I supposed to know Nico was your boyfriend?" 

Nico rolled his eyes. "Percy, what about a few months ago? You said, 'Nico what are you doing tomorrow?' And I said, 'Will and I are going on a date.'" Nico looked at Percy expectantly. Percy looked back at him, shocked. "I thought you were joking!" "Do I look like the kind of person that jokes?" "You honestly look like a court jester." "Say that again, Percy, and watch what happens. Oh wait, you won't be able to watch, because you won't have eyes." Percy looked from side to side nervously. "You're joking now, right?" "Do I look like I'm joking?" "You look like a cour- Aaaah!" Will held Nico back, albeit begrudgingly, because sewing eyes back in is no easy feat. 

Hazel came back, her stomach considerably less full than when she left, to an odd sight. Will was struggling to hold her brother, who was trying to attack Percy. Percy shoveled his food into his bag and ran as fast as he could. Because as hard as sewing eyeballs back in can be, getting your eyeballs gouged out by an emo gremlin is worse.


	20. Giuseppe

"I want to set you up with my friend Giuseppe."  
"Absolutely not."  
"Come on, Nico. He's Italian and he's hot. He's so buff. I would kill someone for a kiss from him."  
"Then why don't you date him?"  
"Because Giuseppe is gay. That's why I'm setting him up with you." 

Nico turned around slowly. "Piper, are you setting me up with Giuseppe because he's the only other gay guy you know? We've been through this. I'm not into any of your friends, like, ever."   
"But Giuseppe has abs of literal steel."   
"I'm into robots. Unless you meant metaphorical steel. In which case, I would not be interested. Abs are made of flesh. That's how they work. Abs do not come in steel form. You know this. Come on."  
"You're into robots?" Piper asked.  
"No, Piper," Nico said, "I said that to prove a point."  
"You didn't do a very good job. I don't even know what point you were trying to prove."  
"I am trying to prove that all of your gay friends suck."  
"That's homophobic."

"Hey, I'm Giuseppe." Said a tall, buff man.  
"I'll leave you to it." Piper said, walking away.  
"I'm Nico."  
"Wanna make out?"   
"I do not."  
"You sure? I'm from Jersey."  
"Everything is legal in New Jersey."  
"Are you sure? Because my abs are so good that they should be illegal."  
"Let's get some food." 

"I'll have the macaroni with gravy."  
"What?"  
"Ya know, tomato gravy."   
"So.... Piper said you were Italian?"  
"Naw bro. I'm from the Jersey shore."  
"What are your hobbies?"  
"Surfing, working out, chugging protein shakes, or should I say brotein shakes. I have an eight pack. My muscles are insane. Wanna feel?"  
"No thanks."  
"Your loss, bro." 

 

"Ugh. Will, you will not believe what happened today." Nico said.  
"Spill that tea." Will replied.   
"I was on a date with this douche and it was hot outside. So he took off his shirt. And his pants. He had shorts on under his pants for some reason, but still. He was eating his macaroni with tomato sauce, which he called gravy, and then bam! He took off his clothes! It was a disturbing situation as well as a sobering reality."  
"Dang." Will said, talking Nico over the phone. "That sucks. It seems like we're the only two compatible gay guys in the area."  
"Hilarious, Will. I'm sure you'll find someone." Nico said, oblivious to what his friend was saying.   
"Not to be weird, but I've already found him."  
"Oh, cool." Nico said, slightly disappointed that Will was with someone else. "I'm happy for both of you."  
"What? I- thanks. Bye."  
"Bye."

Will felt like he was being pretty blunt.  Like, he had done just short of saying, 'Nico, I'm romantically in love with you. I want to kiss your mouth with my mouth and hug your body with my body.'   
So yeah, pretty blunt. 

Unfortunately, Giuseppe was also very into Nico. And he was even more blunt. 

Giuseppe: hey baby  
Nico: Hello. Don't call me baby.  
Giuseppe: i want to cover you in honey and then lick it off you like a tomcat  
Nico: What the fuck? Giuseppe, even if I was into you, I would still say no. Because that's straight up nasty.  
Giuseppe: your not into me?  
Nico: Correct. I don't even know how you got this number.  
Giuseppe: piper gave it to me  
Giuseppe: you sure you arent in to me bc your body is rockin  
Nico: I'm just going to block you really quick.

Giuseppe didn't seem like a bad guy, just not at all what Nico was looking for. A 'your' that clearly should have been a 'you're' and all those missing punctuation marks? Nico was not interested. 

Will: I've been implying this for a long time but I'm in love with you.  
Nico: LOL.  
Will: Seriously.  
Nico: I think you have the wrong person. Check who you're texting.  
Will: I know who I'm texting, Nico.   
Nico: It's kind of a mean prank to tell someone you're in love with them.  
Will: It's not a prank.  
Nico: Kayla, I know it's you, give the phone back to Will.   
Will: How about we talk more in person? Tomorrow?  
Nico: Sure. Let's meet at my house.

"Oh damn! It wasn't Kayla!" Nico shouted when he saw Will holding flowers.  
"Is that bad? Did you want it to be Kayla?" Will asked.   
"No. This is... weird. But good! I'm glad you like me. Because I like you, too."   
"Nico!" A voice from behind Will yelled. Nico peered our the doorway and saw Giuseppe. "My heart sings for you, babe."   
Will took a few steps forward, into Nico's home, and shut the door. Once it was locked, Nico put the flowers in a vase and put a pot of water on the stove.   
"What are you doing?"  
"Making macaroni."  
And through the door, the faint sound ouf shouting could be heard. "Add gravy!"


	21. Hallucinations

Trigger Warning: Hallucinations, mental illness,  
This fanfiction may appropriate and have inaccurate information about mental illness. Do not read if this will upset you. 

Nico POV  
I'm just going to say this from up top. I am in love with Will Solace. He's the reason I wake up. He's the reason I push through the hardships. He's my everything.

"Will, I love you." I say one afternoon. We're sitting under a tree in a nearby park. Will wraps his arms around me gently. "I love you, too, Neeks." 

This was my life, and I loved it. Yeah, I had to deal with painful treatments for whatever the doctors said was going on in my head. And yeah, one of my sisters only visited me sometimes, but my other sister visited almost every day. And, I had Will. He was worth it. Because at the end of the day, once the scientists were done doing their stupid tests, Will would come and take me away to the park. We would sit under the tree, our tree, and we would relax. Sometimes we would get ice cream from the local shoppe. Sometimes Will would sing to me. Sometimes we would look at the passing clouds. But most of the time, we would just lay there, happy and content, my head in his lap, his hand in my hair. 

Will believed me. He believed what no one else believed. He believed that there wasn't anything wrong with me. He believed that I could see things. Monsters, gods, titans. He said he was one of them. He was a child of the healing god. 

Unfortunately, no one else believed me. No one else believed that I can see skeletons and ghosts. "Nico, please," Hazel would say, "Sit back down. There's nothing there."   
"It's going to hurt you, Hazel. I can't let it hurt you."   
"Nico. Sit down. I'll be fine. Did you forget to take your meds? They put you on new ones."  
"Why do I have to take the meds?" I asked.  
"We've been through this. To stop the hallucinations. Don't you want the monsters to go away?"   
"The medicine will make the monsters go away?"  
"It might. There's only one way to find out."

The medicine tasted like poison. It always tasted like poison.   
It doesn't matter, I told myself. All that matters is Will. Seeing Will at the end of the day will make it all worth it. 

Hazel left and I laid down on my bed. I opened my eyes, and Will was there. We walked to the park. 

"Nico. I love you." Will said.  
"I love you, too. I love you with all my heart."  
"So, they put you on new meds, huh?"  
"Yeah." I say. "They might make the monsters go away. But that's what they said about the other meds, too, and they haven't worked. But maybe these will."  
Will smiles. "They'll work. I can feel it."

My days after that were pretty much the same. The doctors took my vitals, my sister came in and made me take my meds, and then Will and I hung out. My father came to visit me once a week. He was a busy man, Hazel said. He didn't have much free time. He visited as often as he could. I knew that was a lie, but it was nice that Hazel cared. 

I started to get better. I stopped seeing monsters so often, which was really, really nice. I stopped seeing gods and demons and spirits and oracles. Will got busier. He stopped coming everyday. Just every few weeks. But it was fine. At least I got to see him. 

"We're going to up your dose. 80 milligrams of Nexolnuxesione should stop hallucinations completely." 

"The doctor was right." Will said.   
"Will! I didn't expect to see you here!" I exclaimed, dropping my spoon and running over to him.  
"I'm so sorry I haven't been able to visit. The gods have been stopping me."  
"The gods don't bother me anymore, Will." Will hugged me. "Oh, Nico! I'm so happy for you!"  
"Are we going to the park?"  
"I'm sorry. We don't have enough time. I have to leave soon. I won't be able to see you again. But remember, I love you." He kissed my cheek. Then he left. 

"Hazel!" I said. Hazel hugged me.   
"I heard the meds were working! No hallucinations for six days!"  
"Will's gone."   
Hazel's smile disappeared. "Will. Your boyfriend? He was your boyfriend, right?"  
"Yes. But he hasn't visited me."  
"Nico, I need to tell you something."  
"What, Hazel?"  
"Will was a hallucination. He was just like the gods and the monsters. The medicine made him go away."

I felt as if lighting had struck my body. My heart physically ached.   
"No." Is all I said. "No."   
"Nico, Will would want you to get better, even though the only way to get better is without him." I start sobbing. I made him up. I don't want to get better without him.

AN// Someone requested a migraine fic so I looked it up. Then I got sad and stopped reading. This is how I imagine the rest of the fic would go, Solangelo style.


	22. Heartburn or Heartbreak?

"It's time to play Heartburn or Heartbreak? For those of you who don't remember, Heartburn or Heartbreak is the game where Will Solace insults you until you cry, and you eat heartburn inducing foods. In the end, you have to decide which is worse; the heartburn or the heartbreak. Are you ready?" Percy says in a game show host voice. Piper, Leo, Jason, and Nico sat on the floor of the Aphrodite cabin.  
"One question. Why?" Piper asks.   
"Because it's like a Comedy Central roast mixed with deep fried butter and cheese! Fun!"  
"This sounds like a bad idea," Jason points out, "Someone's going to get offended. Probably whoever's getting roasted. Who's getting roasted?"  
"Apollo!"

"This is so good," Apollo says from the makeshift stage, shoveling tomatoes and gravy into his mouth. He wiped his mouth on his sleeve, seemingly not realizing that the food was disgusting. 

"I'm scared," Will says from behind stage. "What if when my dad turns back into a god, he kills me for insulting him?"  
"That's a risk you'll have to take!" Kayla says, adjusting Will's bow tie. "Now get out there!" She pushes her brother into stage, where Apollo was messily eating the most disgusting concoction Will had ever seen. 

"Um," He says, "I don't want to do this."  
"Do it!" Drew yells. "We want to see you die!"  
"Damn, Drew. I thought we were friends."  
"We are." Drew said as if this was obvious. Will guessed that's just the kind of 'friend' she is. Like Gina Linetti. Will loved her. 

"Apollo, please don't kill me."   
"I won't kill you. You gave me tomato gravy."  
"Er, right. You suck?" Will says, still visibly upset he is being forced to trash talk an ex-god, no matter how much of a dick that ex-god may be. "You left my mom when she was pregnant with me. You stayed with Kayla's dad for about a year, but then you just left him with a baby. You're inconsiderate and you have bad hair. You're an overall bad person who only cares about himself."  
"How dare you?" Apollo asks, standing up angrily. "My hair is not bad. Sure, it isn't as good as it was when I was a god, but it's still gorgeous. Ack! My chest!"

"So......" Percy slides back onto stage. "Apollo, which is worse? The heartburn? Or the heartbreak?"  
"It stings. He insulted my hair, and he force fed me tomato gravy. He's a monster."  
"I mean," Will says, "I also insulted your personality and just who you are as a person. And you chose to eat that disgusting food."  
"I choose heartbreak. My physical pain will heal," Apollo says, now on the floor in agony, "But I will never get over you hating my hair."


	23. He’s Gone

AN////I forgot about Hades' kids' powers when I wrote this so I went back and edited it to make more sense but it still has some plot holes. Sorry about that. If you couldn't tell by the title, it's very angsty.  
NPOV   
I take a deep breath as I walk toward the edge of camp. I glance back at my now barely visible cabin. I step over the border and start walking away. I don't even know where I'm going. Anywhere but here. This place holds too many memories of him.

I would shadow travel, but I'm just.... tired. Anyone in my situation would be. And Will told me not to. If he's gone, the least I can do is to respect his wishes. Why did Will have to get sent on that stupid quest? He's a healer. He's not fit for a quest. He's amazing, don't get me wrong, but fighting is definitely not his strong suit. I don't even know why they picked him. Maybe the gods wanted to showcase Camp Half Blood's diversity. I don't know. And as I walk through the busy New York intersection, I realize that I don't care. I don't care why they picked him, I just care that they did. And because of them, he's gone. 

My powers are off, but I still know he's dead. Not because of the Hades thing, but because that's the only possible answer for how I feel right now. Will wasn't the only thing keeping me at Camp. I finally felt accepted. I guess that was Will too, though. He not only accepted me, he loved me. He loved my quirks and flaws. He loved how I would bite my lip when I was flustered, how I would slip into Italian when I was mad. I love how he would call me Darlin' and how passionate he was about needle sizes. I love how he would always put others before himself, sometimes to the point of almost collapsing from exhaustion. I would have to remind him that he was important, that he needed to take a break. I loved how he did the same for me, making me stop when I had reached my limits. I loved how bad he was at singing. And most of all, I loved how made me feel loved. And I think I made him feel the same way.

I don't know how long I've been walking. Hours? A day? Maybe two. I'm surprised no one from Camp has tried to IM me. Maybe they have tried, and just couldn't. I'm not an easy person to contact. I've been so disassociated that I could have been walking for a week and not have noticed. In fact, the only reason I know it's only been a day or so is that no monsters have attacked me yet.

I walk into the fast food restaurant on the side of the highway and realize it's a McDonald's. It's a tradition, My intrusive thoughts whisper, Bianca died and you came here to summon her. To run. And now Will's gone, too. And now you're back.  
I guess it is kinda symbolic. I'm more of less in the same situation I was in a few years ago. That's depressing. I drink away my problems with cherry soda. It's disgusting, and Will would get so mad when I drank it. I only drank it once, because again, disgusting, but I would drink a gallon of cherry soda every day to be able to see my love's face one last time. Just to hear him yell at me about how soda ruins your teeth. To feel his hand in mine, his cheek pressed against my neck. To glance at him from across the dining pavilion and see that he was already looking at me. To hear him rant about his siblings. To fall asleep in his arms. Just one more time. 

WPOV   
I shudder in the darkness, reaching for my knife. I can't see anything, but I'm praying to every god I can think of that I find it. I grab it and slice at the net around my legs, very carefully so to not cut my skin. I free my legs and sit still for a moment, allowing my eyes to adjust to the darkness. I'm in a small cave, next to an even smaller river. I try to recall what happened as I climb out of the hole. 

I was walking along, having successfully killed the Hydra I was sent to kill (it was terrorizing mortals), when I stopped at a stream. I was thirsty. Who wouldn't be? So I crouched down and scooped the cool water into my mouth. Then I got up and stepped over a stream, directly into a trap. Go figure.

It's a miracle nothing ate me. I laugh, thinking about how Nico's never going to let me hear the end of this. "Will," He'll say, "You drank from a stream and fell into a hunter's trap?" And— I stop my train of thought, panicking. Oh gods. Oh gods. Nico! How long have I been gone? He must be worried. No, I'm sure it's fine. He can tell I'm alive. Unless his powers aren't working properly (thanks a lot for your powers' inconsistency, Hades). I left for the Hydra, traveled for about two days, took a day to find it, killed it, and came back. So not that long, unless I've been in that cave for a long time. 

I walk about a day before I reach the highway. I take the first exist that leads to a gas station. I go into their bathroom and wipe the blood and dirt off my face with moist paper towels. After a few minutes, I go out and look at the 'discount! 50¢ per product! What a steal!' rack. I go outside and look on the ground for quarters. I find fifty-one cents of change and buy a protein bar. Then I walk up to the guy at the counter and stare at him, smiling creepily, until he lets me use his phone. I call Annabeth's number. 

"Who is this? How did you get this number?" Annabeth's voice asks.  
"Annabeth. Thank the gods. It's me, Will. Can someone come pick me up? I don't know where I am but you know how to track calls, right?"  
"Will! You're alive!" Annabeth yells. "Chiron, it's Will."  
"William." Chiron's on the phone now. "Where are you?"  
"Uh," I look around the gas station. "I don't know. I woke up in a cave."  
"I'll have someone track this number. Are you alright?"  
"Yeah. Um, can I speak to Nico, please?" I know I should be concerned for my wellbeing. I should feel intimidated by the guy who's glaring at me as I use his phone. But right now I just want to talk to my boyfriend.   
Chiron goes silent.   
"Chiron? You still there?" I ask.  
"Yes," the centaur says as if he's carefully calculating every word before speaking. "But, you see.... Nico isn't here." I roll my eyes. All I want to do is to hear Nico's voice.   
"Could you get him, please?" I ask somewhat impatiently. I'm a nice person. And not one of those 'nice guy' nice guys. I'm genuinely nice. I help people and I heal people. I'm patient and kind. But I just woke up in a floor cave.   
"Will, what I'm saying is that Nico isn't at Camp. We don't know where he is. We suspect he's looking for your body— er, you. Sorry about that, we thought you were dead." He chuckles as if this is a fun misunderstanding before regaining his serious demeanor.   
"As I was saying, after a week or so of you being gone, he left."

 

I don't remember much of what happened after that. I remember a camper picking me up and driving me back to Camp. I remember being hugged by Austin and Kayla. I remember laying here in bed, thinking. I can't believe I had been missing so long. I mean, yeah. I guess I can. I must've been in that cave for, what, three days? That's a total of about a week. Nico must've been terrified of what happened to me. I have to find him. I don't care what it takes. I think, half asleep, before collapsing into my pillow.

NPOV   
I sip my coffee. I can only imagine how scary I look to others. I haven't slept in days. I just want to find my boyfriend. Even if he's dead, even if he's been mauled almost beyond recognition. I need to find him. He'd be so upset that I'm sacrificing my wellbeing to look for him. To be fair, I'd be mad if he went days without sleeping in order to find me. I laugh, and someone across the gas station flinches. 

WPOV  
"Nico Di Angelo, wherever he is." I say into the rainbow. I've been at this for hours with no luck. But something must be different about this time. The mist shows Nico standing in a forest. He turns around, not seeing the Iris Message. His eyes are far more hollow than I've seen them in years. His messy, wet hair has leaves tangled in it. Dang, Nico. You should've stayed in camp. Why did Kayla let you run?   
He kept walking until he reached a highway. He passed a sign saying he had now entered Delaware. Where the Hades is he going? I'm about to shout to him when the image flickers out. I try to reach him again, but like the first times, I get no result. 

"Chiron, I, um, need to borrow a car." The Centaur looks at me and raises an eyebrow. "Why?" "I found Nico." 

Chiron lets me go. I mean, if he hadn't, I would've gone anyway, but this is simpler. He does, however, make me bring along two other people. So I bring Jason, who was all too excited to go, and Piper. Piper's nice, and I figured after I'm done finding, kissing, and berating my boyfriend, he's going to want to be around nice people. 

 

Delaware is way too big. Why the Hades is Delaware so big? There are like, a thousand forests, two hundred McDonald's, and fifty main highways. It turns out Nico isn't in a forest, a McDonald's, or on a highway. He's in the parking lot of a gas station.   
"Camp Half Blood." He says in a hoarse voice. He throws a drachma into a small rainbow that's formed in a gasoline puddle. It takes his coin but doesn't show him an image. He kicks the puddle, getting gas on his shoe. "Dammit! I just. Want. To find. My boyfriend's body."   
"Nico?" I shout. He turns around, scowling.   
"How do you know my na— Will?" Nico stands there in shock for a moment before running at full speed to me, flinging himself into my arms.   
"You're alive. Oh, gods. I can't believe it." He starts sobbing into my chest. He's so short, I love it. "Yeah." I whisper, hugging him tightly. "I'm alive."   
"Get a room!" Piper yells, "Just kidding. But get in the car."

Jason and Piper are sitting in the front while Nico is in the back with me. "Are you okay?" I ask him, rubbing my thumb on his hand. "Yeah." He says, looking at me lovingly. "I am now."

"Good." I say. "Because now I can yell at you without worrying about your stability." I take a deep breath. "Nico Di Angelo!" I say to him in a stern voice.   
"Ooh, sexy voice." Jason says.   
"Shut up, Jason." I say angrily. "It's not a sexy voice, it's an angry voice. And if you don't shut up, the anger will be directed to you." Jason shuts up. I turn my attention back to my boyfriend. "You shouldn't have run from Camp! Yeah, you've ended up fine the last few times, but still! You have friends now! Why would you do this? You could have died! What were you thinking?" I ask him.   
"I... I was scared." He nuzzles his head into my shoulder. It's nice to know that he trusts me enough that even when I'm mad at him, he knows I'd never hurt him. His voice cracks as if he's about to cry. I run my hand through his hair. "I was scared. I thought that you were gone. It was Bianca all over again. I— I thought you were dead."   
"I'm sorry, Darlin'." I whisper to him. "I promise, I will never leave again." I didn't have a choice this time, but I doubt they'll force me again. And if they try, well, I don't know. I'll figure it out later. 

 

A few hours later, Nico and I are laying in his bed. I didn't even wait for my siblings to go to sleep. I just asked Kayla to do it then I snuck over to his cabin. He had showered and changed. His hair is clean and soft again. I nuzzle my face into it.   
"I'm so, so sorry." He whispers.   
"I'm sorry," I say, "That you had to go through that. I should've been more understanding. But everything's fine now. I'm safe, you're safe, and I get to bury my face in your soft hair again." 

It takes a few days to get back to normal. We love each other, but one person going missing and the other sacrificing their wellbeing to look for person A is a hard thing to move past and have everything stay the same. But we get there soon enough. I think we just have to give it time. And I'm fine with that, because neither of us are going to run out of time anytime soon.


	24. How Hazel Found Out

NPOV  
Will and I just moved into our flat in New Rome. There are many benefits to this. One of them was that so Hazel couldn't walk in on us ever again. That was a traumatizing experience for everyone involved.   
I was minding my own business, shirtless, Will's tongue in my mouth,  when Frank and Hazel walked in. Frank immediately turned into a ferret and ran away. Hazel however, stood frozen in horror. She slowly backed up and closed the door. "OH MY GODS! WHAT THE ACTUAL HECATE!?!" I heard her yell.   
"Sorry, Hazel. I forgot you had a key." I explained.   
"You two have exactly one minute before I come in there, and then you will explain yourselves! I'm going to take a moment to calm down." 

Nothing is more of a mood killer than your sister screaming at you. I know first hand. Will and I took a moment to dress ourselves and clean up, before sitting on my bed and waiting for Hazel.   
"What are we going to tell her?" I asked Will.  
"The truth, I guess? You're gay and fucking your bestfriend-now-boyfriend."   
I glared at him. "Yeah. We'll just....um....phrase it differently." 

Hazel stormed in, took a few deep breaths, and sat down on her bed. "So... You two are together?" I nodded. "So you're gay." I nodded again. "Why didn't you tell me sooner?"  
"I guess I wasn't sure how you'd react. I mean, you're from the 40's." She looked upset. "Nico. You're my brother. I'm disappointed that you thought I would react poorly. I'm not upset you're dating and.......doing stuff.... with Will," she stopped for a second to glare pointedly at my boyfriend. "But I am upset you didn't tell me. I love you, Neeks. I always will, no matter what." She smiles at me before turning to Will. She whips out her gladius and holds it to his neck. "If you ever hurt my brother I will cut out your eyes and shove them up yo—" "I think he gets it, Hazel." She sheaths her sword and nods. "Good. He'd better." Once she's gone, Will asks, "Can Hazel keep a secret?"  
"No." I respond. "We'll have to tell Reyna. Get ready for more threats."


	25. Hypothermia

NPOV  
I wake up in a bed with white blankets surrounded by a white wall and white curtains. The only decor that wasn't white was a framed poster on the wall. The poster is one of those cheesy 'an apple a day keeps the doctor away!' sayings in front of a happy caterpillar. The air carries the strong, slightly familiar scent of rubbing alcohol.   
I must be in the infirmary. I try to figure out why I'm in here. My memory's a little hazy, but I try to replay the day's events.

"I'm really enjoying being friends with you," Will had said. We were riding a Pegasus together. "But I was wondering..." He paused, which was either a really bad sign or a really good sign. There was no in between. "If you'd like to, I don't know, be more than friends?" This surprised me so much I had fallen off Blackjack (the only Pegasus that allowed me to ride him) and into the lake. I remember trying to shadow travel to my cabin as I fell, but it was the middle of the day and there were no shadows in mid-air. Big surprise there. I hit the lake and heard a few tiny demigods shriek in surprise as I landed in the water. At least, I think that's what happened. What if I'm wrong?

 

"Oh good. You're awake." Kayla pushed through the curtain, snapping me out of my daze. "We just have to do a few tests to see if you have to stay for a few days or if you can go." She picks up a clipboard and pen. "I'm going to ask you a few questions. What's your name?"  
"Conner Schmidt." She glares at me.   
"Fine." I sigh. "Nico Di Angelo. But you already know that, so why are you asking me?"  
Kayla sighs exasperatedly. "Standard hospital protocol. Trust me, we don't enjoy it either. Age?"   
"Either 90-something or 14. Take your pick." "I'll go with 14. That way you c— never mind. Weight?" I wonder what she was going to say.  
"I don't know? Like, 120 pounds or so? Honestly, that sounds right, but I have no idea."  
"That's fine. We can weigh you later. Height?"   
Ugh. I hate this question. It makes me so dysphoric. "5 feet tall." She nods and writes it down. 

"Do you remember why you're here?"  
"Uh, yeah, I think so. I was Pegasus riding with Will, then he asked me something— I can't remember what, exactly— and I fell into the canoe lake, startling a bunch of kids."  
"Okay, then! Thanks, Nico. I just need to get your temperature, then we can give you a diagnosis." She puts down her clipboard and sticks a thermometer into my mouth. I don't care for the taste of plastic thermometer covers. I wonder if anyone actually likes the taste. I can't imagine a new demigod eating ambrosia for the first time and saying, 'Yum. Plastic. My favorite treat.' That would be weird, but not as weird as thinking your best friend wants to date you but not being totally sure. I'm pretty worried that my memory isn't messed up from the fall, and Will did ask me out, only for me to fall into the lake. He probably thinks that I was so repulsed that I jumped off Blackjack to escape him. No, Will isn't stupid. He can be extremely blunt, and he doesn't know when to shut up, but he's not an idiot. 

"Hypothermia." Kayla says. I totally zoned out for a moment there. "You can leave tomorrow, but you have to stay here until then." She hands me a cup of  medicine before leaving. Not to be rude, but I'm glad she's gone. Hopefully, I can be alone for a bit and think. Think about how Will might have asked me out. Think about how maybe by 'more than friends' he meant best friends. What if he had a crush on me but I scared him off? Maybe being alone with my thoughts wasn't the best idea.

"You're free to go." Kayla says, plopping a small bottle into my hands.   
"What's this?" I inquire.  
"Medicine. You can leave the infirmary but you still need to take this twice daily. Goodbye." And with that, she shut the door, leaving me outside. I'm halfway to my cabin when Will jogs up to me. "Hey, Nico! How're you doing?"  
Did he not know I just spend a day in the infirmary? No. Probably not. He must've either not been there or he was busy with other patients. Both were valid excuses. It's not like we're together or anything, no matter how much I want us to be. He was probably asking to be polite. Why would he care how I was doing?   
"I'm doing okay, I guess."  
"That's good. I'm glad you're doing better. Hey, um, do you remember anything from before you fell?"  
"A bit."   
"Do you remember what I asked you?"   
Well, here goes nothing. Either I'm about to shatter the first real friendship I've had since I was six, or I was about to get a boyfriend. There is no in between.  
"I think so. You.... asked me out? On a date? Or something?"   
He smiles at me. "So, what's your answer?" Oh my gods! It's happening! "Of course! I'd love to!"   
"Great!" He beamed with delight. "Are you free on Saturday?"


	26. Ice Cream

No. No. No. This was not happening. I can not go through this again. 

First Percy, now Will. 

I know life isn't supposed to be easy. But I thought maybe, just maybe, I could have this one thing in my life. I could have a boyfriend, a loving boyfriend. A beautiful, intelligent, amazing boy, who for some reason was in love with me. 

I knew it wasn't going to happen. I shouldn't have even tried. Why did I try? It was better off when we were friends. Now Will hates me. What the fuck is wrong with me? Why did I have to go and ruin the one aspect of my life that makes me feel as if life is worth living? Why did I have to tell Will? Why couldn't I have just been a happy, closeted gay. There was exactly one (1) thing in my life that I look forward to. Seeing Will. I looked forward to eating lunch with him. I looked forward to playing video games at my house after school with him. I looked forward to looking over at his face and seeing his gorgeous blue eyes and thinking, 'Wow, they're like the sky.'   
There is no limit with Will. He makes me feel as if I am flying. Flying in a sky made completely out of happiness and bliss. 

But that wasn't enough for me. I wanted him to know how I felt. It was unfair to him, making him think that all I wanted was his friendship., When I really wanted his love. I'm in love with him. I am in love with Will Solace, and he will never love me back.

He's probably texting his friends right now.  
"Oh My God, he's so creepy. I didn't realize before, I don't know how. But he's into me? I'm not gay. I'm fine with gay people, it's your choice, but I'm not gay. What made him think I was.... like him? No homo." 

No. Will's a good person, who most likely wouldn't say or think that. But that's what I thought about Percy. That's what I thought about the last time I let myself fall in love. I really that stupid? 

Percy and Will.   
Cute, caring, kind boys who could never love me back. 

My phone buzzes as I wallow in self pity. I barely notice it. My eyes are blurry with tears as I reach over and see the message. The most horrifying text that has ever been sent in the history of humanity.   
"We need to talk."

We decide to meet at the ice cream shop near his house. I got a scoop of coffee and a scoop of chocolate. He got rainbow sherbet.   
"Hey, Nico." He says, sitting across from me. He smiles. I don't.   
"Let's cut to the chase." I say. I don't want to experience more heartbreak than necessary. "You hate me now, right? You asked to meet me here so you could tell me how disgusted you were?"  
"What?" Will looks confused. "I'm not disgusted by you."  
"Then why did you run when I told you?"  
"I... I ran away when you told me you liked me because I was confused. I," Will looks around the ice cream shop to make sure no one was listening. "I like you, too. But I, um, didn't think you liked me back." He laughs nervously. "I was scared Jason had told you I liked you. And you were making fun of me. I mean, looking back, I can see that you aren't the kind of person who would do that. But things are harder when you're in them."  
"Wait.... you don't hate me? You like me?"  
"Yes, Nico. I like you."

"I smell wedding bells." Hazel says from under my bed.   
"It was just a kiss, Hazel," I say, though even I don't believe what I'm saying.   
"You know that's not true. It was so much more than a kiss. You guys are in love!"  
I smile and sigh happily. "Yeah. I think we are."

 

Angst and fluff? In my fanfic? It's more likely than you may think.


	27. If I Had Done It....

Author's note; This mentions suicide, so if that triggers you, please don't read this. 

Nico's point of view 

I almost did it that night. I was fully prepared to jump. But I didn't. Percy came up to see if I wanted to play mythomagic with the others. I really didn't want to. I just wanted it to end. To feel the sensation of falling and hitting the water, then nothing at all. I hadn't done it sooner because I knew I'd just end up in the underworld, but that night I didn't care. However, I knew if Percy saw me jump he would control the waves. So I stepped back and said yes.  
If I had done it, Hazel might've been upset for a while. I know I was far from fine for a long time after Bianca died. But it's not like she would be alone. She had Frank and Piper and the rest of the seven. She wouldn't be like I was, alone and depressed, looking for a way to bring back my dead sibling. Crying to herself, wishing it was her. Feeling as if the entire world is against her.  
If I had done it, I would never have become friend with Reyna. We would've never shadow traveled the Athena Parthenos back to camp. The seven would have had to make a choice, either Halfblood Hill would be destroyed, or Percy and Annabeth would die. Both were unacceptable.  
If I had done it, I wouldn't know little Chuck now. He's so energetic. I wonder if I was ever that annoying.   
But the worst thing that wouldn't ever happen is that I wouldn't have met you, Will. We wouldn't have become friends, then boyfriends, then husbands. And that is the biggest reason of them all. I am glad I didn't jump.


	28. “I love You.”

Nico's Point Of View  
He kissed me again. Big, sloppy kisses, all over my face. I kissed him back, slowly but passionately.   
"Hey... Nico?" He asked me.  
"Yeah Sunshine?"  
"I, um, I love you."  
Shock rushed onto my face, and it must've  been pretty obvious because Will started apologizing profusely.  
"I.... I'm sorry, I didn't mean to come on too strong, I just like you so much and I didn't mean to make you feel uncomfortable, but quite honestly if making out in the back of your dad's car doesn't freak you out, this probably shouldn't, but who am I to judge? I only meant that... Oh, Gods I'm just making it worse aren't I? What I was trying to say—" Seeing him flustered was cute, but I could tell he was about to have an anxiety attack.  
"Shut up." Yikes. Not the best choice of words to calm down your boyfriend.   
"I love you, too, Will. You fill every waking moment of my life with joy and sunshine. You help me when I'm depressed or sick, but most of all, you love me for who I am. For all of my quirks and flaws. And I love you in return, more than I ever knew I could love." I rested my head gently on his lap. He obviously doesn't know what to say. You can tell by the way he bites the inside of his cheek just slightly, a habit that only someone who has spent years with the other would notice. But I do notice, because I've kissed those lips, that cheek. Unfortunately, I don't know what to say either. So I just kiss him. A simple answer to a complicated situation.   
"We're here, Nico." I had forgotten Jules Albert was here. I thought about how the car had stopped at least half an hour ago. "Is something wrong, Nico?"  
I looked at him wearily. "Were you watching us?"  
He winked at me, "I've got to be able to have some fun once and a while. This job gets boring. You usually don't even give out handshakes."  
"So you decided to watch us make out in the back seat." I was pretty angry. "Goodbye, Jules Albert."   
Will and I stepped out as Jules dissolved into the dirt, chanting "Solangelo, Solangelo, Solangelo!" He had gotten into his head that that was our name. And that he shipped it, just like Chiron. When your teacher ships you, it can get pretty awkward. He often winks at me and purposely pairs me up with Will. I think he knows we're dating now, and have been for a few years now, but he hasn't told anyone. Piper and Jason have been trying to get us together for a long time. It's fun to watch them struggle.


	29. Infirmary

AN///This is a collab I did with gay_weefee on Wattpad. I wrote the first Nine paragraphs and they wrote the last few.

NPOV  
"Nico Di Angelo! What is going on here?"  
"Oh, yeah." I responded casually. It really wasn't that big of a deal. "I got attacked by Lycan and Reyna stitched me up but they just refuse to heal. I don't know why."  
"No, I'm talking about your shirt. What the Hades are you wearing? Are those parrots? And what's going on with— wait." Will Solace paused a few seconds, the realization taking a moment to settle in. "Lycan? You were attacked by Lycan? And you just now thought to tell me?"   
"When would I have told you?" I asked. I mean, when would I have told him? It's not like we were friends. I say this as Will took multiple deep breaths so to not scream in frustration. He did not succeed at this. "When will you learn?" Will shrieked in a tone that resembled that vine. "That your actions have consequences?"  
"I know my actions have consequences. You telling me that is like Snape telling Harry that 'life is pain' as if Harry didn't know that." Will calmed down for a second.   
"Ugh. I hate Snape."  
"Same." I agreed. We both stayed silent for a moment before Will once again remembered the original problem.   
"Lycan!? Nico, you're lucky to be alive!"  
"Woohoo. I'm not dead." I said in a monotone voice. Will didn't seem to notice my low self-esteem, he was too busy frantically looking through a cabinet and grabbing seemingly random bottles. I wasn't a doctor, I had no idea what those bottles and jars contained.

"Open your mouth." Will says in a commanding tone.  
"Why?" I ask. I'm not going to open my mouth for anyone without knowing why.   
"So I can stick this spoon in your mouth and you can take seven different medicines at once. So open up." I open my mouth and he shoves the spoon in my mouth.  
"Oh, gods." I say about the disgusting medication. "I just choked. That spoon toched the back of my throat."  
"Good practice." He said absentmindedly, shuffling through a drawer. He bowed his head down, trying to hide his blush. "Because you need to eat more." He said quickly. I wonder why he seems embarrassed. What else would he have been talking about? He grabs his clipboard and turns around to face me, his face still slightly pink.

"When was the last time you had at least ten straight hours of sleep?" Will asks as he scribbled on his clipboard.  
"A few days ago. When Reyna, Hedge, and I delivered the Athena Parthenos." I respond. He squints at me suspiciously.   
"Non shadow travel induced sleep?"   
"Oh." I think for a moment. Gods, it's been a while. "About a year ago? After the battle of Manhattan." Don't get me wrong, I do sleep. Just not all at once. And maybe not enough. Before Tartarus, I loved sleeping. It's like being dead, but still being able to save the world occasionally. Life with benefits. But now my 'rest' is plagued with nightmares. It's better to avoid it. Why confront a problem when you could just not?  
"Okay, so," Will says. I'd almost forgotten he was here. "You need to sleep. I'm going to do an IV because quite frankly, you're lucky to even be alive. When was the last time you've eaten? When was the last time you've drank anything other than coffee?"  
"I ate yesterday, Solace. And I drank some tea."  
"Was it caffeinated?"  
"Yes. But it still counts!" I protest.   
"No, Nico. It doesn't. Gods, all Percy drinks is blue soda and he's still healthier than you!" He walks out of the room angrily. I hear him take several deep breaths in the hallway. "Keep it together, William." He says to himself. "Nico's a good person. He just needs to eat a bowl of spaghetti and take a nap." He takes another minute before walking back in with an IV.  
"Why do you want me to eat spaghetti?" I ask.   
"You weren't meant to hear that." He smiles uncomfortably. "But I'm going to explain it to you anyway because you need to know. You're incredibly underweight. You haven't had water in gods know how long, and it's been a full year since you've had healthy sleep. You're running on adrenaline, ambrosia, and a prayer. Your arms are covered in werewolf scratches, which seem to have been infected for days now. You didn't let anyone look at your injuries after the battle, so I don't even know what else is going on." Will pauses and takes a deep breath. "Sorry. I just.... I care about you. And it bothers me that you don't care about yourself." Wait. He cares about me? How?

Will was serious about the spaghetti. He did the IV and gave me a check up, then told me to rest for a few minutes. Then he left. So now I'm just sitting here, waiting for Will to come back.

"Eat your spaghetti!" He says, plopping down a large plate of spaghetti.   
"Where did you get this?" I ask him.   
"Doesn't matter!" He responds cheerfully. "Just matters that you eat it." So I eat it, because I'm never one to refuse spaghetti.  
"So," Will says, sitting. "I have some icebreaker questions! Ready?" I don't want to, but then I remember that Apollo kids can curse you to speak in rhymes for a week. That's a punishment no one deserves. I wouldn't wish it upon my worst enemy, so I nod. "Sure."

"If you were on an island and could only bring three things with you, what would they be? And don't say a raft or a plane or something. That's cheating."   
"A sketchbook, my sword, and French fries." I say, eating the last bit of pasta.  
"Why fries?" Will asks, pale blue eyes looking into mine. Oh gods, his eyes are gorgeous. I feel as if I was shrunken really small, I could drown in them. Although technically, when you're that smart, you could drown in anyone's eyes. Literally. After a moment I realize that haven't responded. I need to play it off cool so he doesn't notice.  
"Is this an interrogation? They're delicious."   
"Very true."

Will leaves about an hour later. I'm left alone in this way too hospital-ey room. I get it, it's an infirmary. But why would they need informational pamphlets on the wall? Why you need a flu shot, and, puberty in female adolescents, and, Is Athletic Foot your Archille's heel? Not to mention the kids' books stacked neatly in a pile next to the sink. Don't poke the mump! seems like a solid lesson to teach children. There are at least four other books, and at least ten more pamphlets, but there was one magazine. I think about reading it, but I decide to sleep instead.

Day Two  
My dreams aren't that bad. Just a goat screaming. Then the screaming gets louder, then, get this, the goat dies. And it's eyes fall out. Surprisingly, this is one of my more pleasant dreams. But then I look more closely at the goat eyes and I realize they look familiar. They're Will's eyes. Good gods, why am I dreaming about a goat with my doctor's eyes? That's so messed up. The eyes are in the ground, but the goat is still screaming. It feels more real than it did a minute ago. Almost as if... My eyes snap open and I see Will, eyes safely intact, screaming a song. "Vα θεραπεύσει, μητέρα γαμημένο τσιμπήματα λύκου!"   
"Oh, gods!" I say, inching away from him. "What are you doing?"   
Will stops singing (if you can call it that) and smiles at me. "I'm healing you. Singing in Greek heals demigods."  
"Singing? Don't you mean shrieking?" I ask. I'm still upset that he woke me up.  
"I know I'm not the best singer," Will says, "But I'm the best healer here. So be quiet and let me shriek at you."

I stare at him while he shrieks. His hair is yellow. Not really blonde, but more of a golden color. Light shines through the window, casting a faint rainbow on his face. He's so gorgeous that I almost can't even hear his 'song'. Almost.   
"Vα θεραπεύσετε, να θεραπεύσετε, να θεραπεύσετε ή θα σας σκοτώσω!" He finishes. I start clapping politely. "Very well done. With threats like those, I doubt the bites will have the courage to stick around." Will rolls his eyes.   
"Alright, Darlin'," He says something else, too. But I don't hear it. Did he just call me Darling? Does he like me? I like him, I realize. That explains why I've been staring at his hair and his face. Hm. Yeah, that checks out.  
"Nico. Hold out your arm. Nico?" Will says, snapping me back into reality. "Right." I say. "Sorry, just zoned out for a second there." I hold out my arm and wonder. Did he really say that? Or am I just hearing what I want to hear?

 

I hadn't realized that I was staring at him until I was making eye contact with him. My face heated up upon seeing those blue eyes and that amused smile.

"You good?" Will asks.

"Y-Yeah," I stutter, glancing at the floor, dropping my head a bit subconsciously to cover my red face with my bangs.

"Really?" He asks, going back to working on my arm, "because you seem to be staring a lot."

"What?" Nico glances up at him, and Will's smiling mischievously as he reaches for gauze. I glare at the floor again, "Shut up," he mutters.

"Hey, Nico?" Will says after a minute, tightly putting the fabric on his shoulder.

"What?" Will looks up at him and smiles.

"You're adorable when you blush." That only makes my face red.

Will leans in a bit, and I pull back, eyes wide and heart pounding in my chest. Holy shit.

"W-What are you doing?" I ask, voice an octave higher. Will puts a hand to my red cheek, and I swallow thickly. I couldn't help as my eyes flick down to his rosy lips.

"Can I . . ?" he trails off, and I look back up into his eyes. I can only nod in response. He beams, before slowly connecting our lips together.


	30. Jail (Love) Birds

Will's POV  
The air smells of blood. The man sitting next to me spits out a tooth. Ugh. Doesn't he know how much it's going to cost to that that fixed? Maybe he doesn't know. Maybe he doesn't care. The guy sitting next to him is smirking in my direction. He has dark hair and pale skin. He catches me looking at him and blushes before looking away. Oh my God. So badass. The other person is a woman, which confuses me. I thought that they had gender separated holding cells for the 'criminals' they apprehend.

The woman, who I soon learn is named Thalia, is banging on the door yelling "I want my fucking lawyer!" The tooth guy (the tooth is still on the floor. I seem to be the only one who notices it.) posted bail an hour or so ago. The other person is still sitting there, smirking, a faint trace of a blush still on his face. He's cute. 

Thalia's lawyer got here. Now I'm alone in a police station holding cell with an incredibly pretty criminal. 

"What're you in for?" I ask the dark haired man. I figure I'm going to jail, so I might as well make a jail friend! It's never too early to start making memories! "I stole a knife." He said. "Then I stabbed the guy in the foot with his knife. He was trying to hurt someone, so I hurt him before he had a chance. You?" He had a charming Italian accent. "I'm Nico, by the way. Nico Di Angelo."   
"Uh...." I respond. Yes, I'm eloquent like that. "I tried to take all the dogs." I said. Nico looked puzzled at my remark. "What?"  
"At the animal shelter. I tried to steal all the dogs."  
"Oh my God." He said to me, shaking his head. "You are amazing." 

My lawyer arrives. Finally. "Will," She says, "You've got to stop doing this." Piper McLean, my lawyer, almost always wins cases. She's amazing. "If you keep robbing dog shelters, you're going to get arrested for real. And I won't be able to stop it. Come on." I follow her, but I turn around to face Nico. "Is your lawyer coming?" "Don't talk to him, William." Piper scolds me.  
"Why not?" I ask her.  
"Because I am my lawyer. And I've the only person who's ever bested Miss McLean in a case." Nico smirks again. He's really good at that. "Then," I ask, "Why are you still here?" "So I could talk to you. No further questions."  
"This isn't a trial, Di Angelo." Piper snarls.   
"Isn't everything a trial, McLean? Of course, you wouldn't know that."  
"What's that supposed to mean?"   
"Oh, nothing much. But enough. Goodbye, Piper McLean. Bye, Will." He waves goodbye and Piper ushers me out the door. As we leave, I see Nico stand up and start talking to an officer. She lets him out of the cell, and he walks out. He's walking toward us, but I don't get to hear what he has to say, because Piper's already driving away.


	31. Jail (Love) Birds Part Two

Will's POV  
"Piper, who was that?" I ask.   
"The scum of the Earth." Piper answered. "Nico Di Angelo."  
"Ooooh. Drama. What'd he do to you?"   
"That's none of your business, Solace."  
"Piper. You've got to know that you just said the most enticing words in existence. Now you've got to tell me." I whined. I doubt most people would talk to their lawyer like this, but I'm not most people. I'm utterly fabulous. Also, Piper and I are close. I cured her dad when no one else would accept their insurance and they couldn't afford treatment. So yeah, Piper's my best friend. She also happens to be my lawyer.  
"I'm not going to tell, you William." She sighs. She rarely sighs, so it's my sign to let it go. I'll get it out of her eventually, when she's ready.  
"Fine." I respond. "But let's talk about something. What's new in law town?"   
"Law town?" She laughs.   
"Um, is there an echo?"   
"Well, my fiancé just arrested a guy I'm trying to prove innocent. So that's something." Piper's fiancé is the local police captain, always trying to prove people guilty. And Piper's a defense lawyer, trying to prove them innocent. It was hilarious how much they used to hate each other, except the many times it got physical. That wasn't so funny. Now whenever Piper chastises me for stealing dogs, I can just say, "knife fight with Reyna." And Piper usually stops yelling at me.

Nico's POV  
I plop onto my bed with a sigh. Today was amazing. I mean, yeah, I saw a guy grope an old woman in an alley. And yeah, I got arrested for stabbing him. But it was worth it. I met a super hot guy in jail. Plus, some guy with an uneven beard and three missing teeth. And Thalia Grace. Thalia Grace was my sister's best friend before she was killed. Forget Panic! At the Disco, it's time for PTSD! In the holding cell. Just thinking about Bianca makes me angry. She was such a good person. She had her entire life in front of her. She had just gotten into her dream school, she had a ton of friends, and.... I can't. I still get sad when I think about it. And then I get mad. She was going to have a wonderful life, and he ruined it. He killed her. They ruled her death an accident, said that asshole was innocent. That day, they destroyed me. And I was determined to set things right as best as I could.

Things couldn't ever be set right. Not while she was dead. But I could do the next best thing. I could make sure it would never happen to anyone else. I would make sure no one would have to suffer like I did, no one would lie awake at night, knowing that one was murdered and not being able to prove it. 

So I studied. And I fought. And I did everything possible to ensure criminals were put away. But I was not cut out to be a police officer, as I was too close to almost every situation. Child abuse? Robbery? Rape? Murder? I couldn't handle it, and I am so ashamed. But I did the next best thing. I became the best damn lawyer in the state. I put away bad guys and I look good doing it. I can't arrest people because it's too close to home, but I can make sure they stay arrested. That's easy. So that's what I do.

I made a lot of friends in the Police Academy. That why all I have to do is smile and they drop all charges. My ex boyfriend Percy is a detective, and we're still on very good terms, and so he helps me. Even if he can't, I can get myself off. Wait, no. That sounds so wrong. But you know what I mean. And my best friend is the police captain. Captain Ramirez-Arellano is a badass. She can intimidate anyone. All I had to do today was tell her what happened, and she told me to leave. So here I am, lying on my bed, thinking about the hot blond guy I met.

I dream the same thing I dream every night. I was walking down the street, as nerdy and naive as always. I thought that while things were hard right then, it would be fine in the long term. My dad would accept my gayness, my sister would become the best in her field, and I would be fine. Everything would be fine. 

Then the scene switches. I see myself staring at Bianca's cold, dead body. I scream. I see the blood splattered against the wall, the bone sticking out of her arm from when she had tried to fight. It was clear to me what had happened. My sister, Bianca, the most amazing person in the world, had just been murdered.

I see myself sitting in the court room, replaying what I saw that cold, cruel night. I see the murder sitting across the room, smirking. At the time I thought it was an airtight plan. I tell them what happen, they talk to the witnesses, they check the security tape, he goes to prison for murder. But that's not what happened. He was found innocent on all charges except one, the penalty for which was a small fine. 

I see her casket. I know what her body looks like, I'm glad the casket is closed. I don't want anyone to see her like this, arms bent in odd angles and a missing eye. I love her. And now she was gone.

 

I wake up and make myself a strong pot of coffee. I drink way too much than is healthy, but I have work to do. As a prosecutor attorney, I have to have cold hard facts to prove this son of a bitch to be guilty. So I get out my files and go through them again, writing the important bits in my notepad, putting the others back in the cabinet. This particular guy says he didn't rob a doctors' office for pain killers. I kinda feel bad for him, addiction is a disorder. But that's the job, so I pull out the evidence and put it in my briefcase.

Will's POV   
With all the chaos of the previous day, I had forgotten about the robbery. Someone stolen a bunch of pain killers from the doctors office where I work. I'm scheduled to testify in court today, and I can barely believe that I had once again forgotten something this important. I mean, had a lot on my plate right now. But still. So that is why I am sitting (15 minutes early with a cup of disgusting, cheap gas station coffee in my hand) on a bench inside this way too big building. You think I would be late, seeing as how I had completely forgotten about today and the events I had planned, but nope. When I get stressed, I rush. And I stop at a gas station and get the worst, most watered down coffee I have ever had the displeasure of drinking in my entire existence. And I get places early, because I feel as if I don't, I will miss the event in its entirety. 

"Hey. What're you doing here?" I ask him. He turns around and raises an eyebrow.   
"I'm a lawyer, Solace." Nico Di Angelo says. "We've established this. I'm working in the room over there." He nods toward the door from which I exited just moments before. "I'm proving this guy guilty. What are you doing here? On trial for stealing dogs?" He smirks at me in a manner I hope is meant to be seductive.   
"No." I glare. "I'm working the same thing as you. I'm a doctor at that place." Nico nodded, seeming to be impressed by my line of work. "Well," Nico said to me. Oh my god, he's about to ask me out! "I usually hate doctors."  
Oof.  He shrugs. "But you seem okay."  
"So kind of you to approve." I roll my eyes.   
"Ignoring that." He says, his eyes narrowed."As I was saying, I usually don't mix personal and professional, but I also usually hate doctors. And the second thing is off, so.... here goes." He takes a deep breath, "Do you want to go out with me?" I open my mouth to respond, but I don't. He hands me a slip of card stock and walks back inside the courtroom. 

I get home and collapse onto the floor. I'm only a foot from my bed, and only a few more to a chair, but I like the floor. And I'm feeling lazy. So I crawl toward my bed like a worm, if a worm was six feet tall and a mammal. Are worms mammals? Probably not. I mean, they're worms. I inch my way over to my bed and pull a slip of paper from my back pocket. On the front it says 'Nico Di Angelo' and below that, 'prosecuting attorney' and below that was written a phone number. So, maybe he was kidding this was his business card. I turn it around so I can tear it in half without having to see his business number, but there's another number on the back. It's written in pen, and dang. He's got good handwriting. I compare the number on the front to the new, handwritten number. They're different numbers, so I call the second one, and I get voicemail. He must be out. 'You've reached Nico Di Angelo, please leave a message. Also, if this is Enrique, I'm not into you and you need to accept that. The healthy thing for you to do is move on. Please. Okay, leave a message!" 

I leave a message. He calls me back almost immediately. "Hey. Is this Will?" He asks.   
"Yep!" I respond. "So... you gave me your number, excellent penmanship by the way, and told me to call you."  
"Yes, I did." He responds. I hear a guy squealing in the background. I also hear what I imagine is Nico putting his hand over the phone and shouting "Calm down, Jason!" He stops talking this Jason character and starts talking to me. "So, Will, are you free this Sunday?"  
"Yes."  
"If you give me your address, I can pick you up at five."   
"Oh! Okay!" I give him my address and I can almost hear him smiling. Or maybe that's Jason's constant squealing. Either way, it's a win for everyone.


	32. Kayla’s Party

NPOV  
I never should have agreed to come here. The music is loud and the building is crowded. My friend Kayla was throwing a party, and she told me that if I didn't come, she would steal my chicken nuggets. Looking back, I can and will admit that I should have let her take them and just gotten more nuggets, but I was hungry and I wasn't thinking straight.

A guy bumps into me, spilling his beer on my leg. "Sorry, man." He says in a deep voice. In the corner there are two shirtless people making out intensely. Get a room. In another corner, there's a guy puking in a fake potted plant. I see by the snack table, three party-goers in a fist fight. Is that really a snack table? Do tiny stale pretzels, three single Milk Duds, and room temperature beer count as snacks? I don't know, but I do know that I would rather die than drink that beer or chew one of those candies. 

How are Kayla's parents allowing this? Are they just out of town? There's a girl chugging chocolate syrup. There's a guy trying to convince his friend to give him a penis piercing. Why would anyone want that? There's a gaggle of drunk girls loudly singing 'Do You Wanna Hang' from that musical. No one wants to hang with a sexy baby. That's just creepy. C'mon, Chloe. You're better than this. 

I'm thinking more about that, when I get hit in the head with a solo cup. That's it. I'm done, goodbye. It doesn't matter how many chicken nuggets Kayla takes from me, I will not stay in this hell hole for one more second. 

Great. Just my luck. The door is blocked. Who even moves a couch in front of the only door? I decide to sneak up the stairs and just hide in one of the rooms up there until the party's done. The upstairs portion of the house was declared 'off limits' but I'm going to go up there anyway. I honestly have no idea how no one else is already up there. Maybe they don't know this house has an upstairs? Maybe they're too drunk to care. 

Either way, I bravely climb up the stairs and sneak into the upstairs hallway. It's already so much quieter. And there are so many baby pictures. Kayla never told me she had a brother. 

I try to open a door. Locked. I go to Kayla's bedroom door and try to open it, but it's also locked. And the door to the bathroom is covered in a weird purple substance that looked a bit like grape jelly. There's one room left. I open the door.

There's a boy, about my age, sitting on his bed, giving himself a pedicure. He has on a panda bear face mask and Beverly Hills Chihuahua 2 pajama pants. He looks up and screams. "Aaah! What the flippity floppity fuck?" He screams.  
"I'm so sorry! I'll go! Argh!"  
"Did you just say argh? Like a fucking pirate?"  
"I'm panicking! I just walked in on you with foot things in between your toes! I didn't even know until earlier that Kayla had a brother!"  
"Um, rude," The blond haired boy says with as much regained composure as possible, "They are called toe separators. They're good for your feet. I'm not going to have bad feet because you can't handle toe etiquette! Back off, man!"  
"I was trying to escape the party." I say.   
He nods. "I get that. You can escape the party with me, as long as you don't mind the smell of nail polish."  
"Thanks. I will."  
I look around his room. It's nice. Cream colored walls, a poster of what I assume is him as a My Little Pony, a peanut shaped jar full of vanilla flavored tootsie rolls. 

"Woah woah woah. Hang on. You've never watched Beverly Hills Chihuahuas 2?"   
"Honestly, Will, I haven't even see Beverly Hills Chihuahuas 1."   
"Oh my god! We need to watch it right now! I'll go- dang it. My DVDs are downstairs."  
"That's fine. We can watch them some other time."  
"Like, on a date?"  
"I mean.... I could be? What would you say if I said it was."  
"I would say that I'd love to. But you didn't ask, sooo.... you still have to do that. I don't make the rules."  
"You drive a hard bargain. Will, would you be my boyfriend?"   
"I would love that."


	33. Kitten

WPOV  
"Oh my Gods! It's so cute! What's its name?"  
Nico smiled at Drew, who had asked the question. "Bee. I found her in the woods, being attacked by some mymerkes, so I fought them off and Chiron said I could keep her." Bee was a tortoiseshell kitten. She was quite small and loved climbing on Nico's shoulder. And Nico loved it. It was nice to see him so happy, but I have to admit, I was a little jealous. Nico was paying so much attention to Bee, and I was feeling a bit left out. I knew that Nico's allowed to have other friends, and a cat would never replace me (Nico's not a furry), so I felt guilty about being jealous. But it is a bit concerning. Nico hadn't talked to me all day. Was he mad at me? Why was he mad at me? Had I done something wrong? No, I didn't think so. It must be the kitten. I needed to get rid of it. Time to devise a plan.

Okay, so I realized how ridiculous that sounded. What's wrong with me? 'Get rid of the kitten, William.' You know what? F off, intrusive thoughts. Nico can love more than one person, even if one of those people isn't a person, but a cat. That's not my decision to make. So why do I want to make it? I guess I'll talk to him about it. It's not his job to fix all my insecurities, but sometimes I need support. 

He smiled at me playfully. "Let me get this straight. Er, clear. You're worried that a cat will replace you."  
I nodded.   
"That's the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard. I spent years in the underworld with my father, talking to delusional spirits. I dealt Jason thinking he could have saved Leo. With Hazel, blaming herself for the rising of Gaea. Don't even get me started on myself. But Bee replacing you is, without a doubt, the stupidest thing I've ever heard." I guess that was reassuring, in his own Nico-ey way.   
"Thanks," I murmured. "I love you."   
"I love you, too, Sunshine.”


	34. Klance Crossover

Nico POV  
"Keith! Wait up!" A tall, lanky man yelled as he ran up to me, calling for 'Keith.' He touched my shoulder, which is obviously unacceptable. I grab his hand and twist his shoulder, bringing him to his knees in pain. "Aaah! What the Quiznak?"  
"Stop touching random boys in malls!"  
"Oh my god, we're boyfriends. Why is your voice weird? And why are you hurting me? Is this because I filled all your clothes with peanut butter and you had to fight in Pidge's?" I sneer at this liar. "Did Leo put you up to this? Jason?"   
"What?" He asked, "It's me, Lancey-Lance. God, if I wasn't in such a vulnerable position right now, I would slap you. In a way where you knew it was playful but it still kinda hurts a little because you just dislocated my arm and you deserve a little smack right now."   
I open my mouth to speak when I hear a voice from behind me. "Nico, look what I found! It- Nico, let him go." I turn my head to see my boyfriend standing there, holding a small notebook and two food court milkshakes. I let Lancey-Lance go, but only because Will told me to. 

He hands me a milkshake and starts apologizing to Lancey. "Hi, I'm Will. I apologize for my boyfriend." Aw. That's what he said when his dad arrived at camp. I have a strong urge to say, "Could you not?" Oh gods, that when we first started dating.   
"Yeah, he totally just broke my shoulder!" Lancey says angrily. Will smiles uncomfortably. "You're arm's fine. Um, don't ask how I know. I just do." Will stands there next to him for a while as Lancey glares. 

"So im guessing you aren't Keith?" Lancey asks in an angry voice.   
"No. I'm named Nico. Sorry about the whole almost breaking your arm thing, Lancey."  
"Just Lance is fine." Lance says, disregarding the name he had told me previously. He plucks the milkshake right from my hand. "This is payment for the medical bills."   
"Lance, why are you stealing milkshakes from this guy?" We hear a voice from behind us . I turn around to see a man holding a Victoria's Secret bag full of knives and meat tenderizers. "You can't take people's shakes because they bother you."  
"There you are! This guy," Lance points to me, "Looks just like you. I thought he was you, and he broke my arm."  
"Your arm is fine." Will says.   
"I don't see the resemblance." The man I assume is Keith says as he looks at me with squinted eyes.  
"Neither do I." I say.  
"Are you kidding?" Will says, grinning mischievously, "Y'all are twins. You have the same mullet."  
"I don't have a mullet!" I groan, pulling at my non-mullet hair. "Not every slightly long hair style is a mullet! Dear gods, I swear, if you say I have a mullet one more time, I will pull a sword on you so quick you'll really regret ever meeting me."  
"I could never regret meeting you."   
"Dammit, Will. That's so sweet and it makes my threat sound cute somehow." 

Keith POV  
Why's this kid being so defensive about his hair? Embrace the mullet. 

"Oh my god, Keith." Lance says, rubbing his forehead after the other couple had left to get the smaller one another milkshake. "This is not what I meant."  
"You said I should get something sparkly from Victoria's Secret. These knives are shiny and silvery."  
"You know this was not what I..... Why do they even sell knives in a lingerie store?"  
"They were under some underwear that said 'Rooster Teeth' on them."  
"Why were you looking at rooster teeth underwear?"  
"I thought it was cool!"


	35. Laser Tag

Will's POV  
It was down to the four of us. Everyone else had been disposed of. The only people left (excluding myself) were Nico, Annabeth, and Reyna. I was surprised that I had made it this far. Usually, I was one of the first ones to get eliminated. Nico and I had made a bet. Whoever came closest to winning got to pick where we would go on a date that weekend. I was determined to win!

I was searching for others to shoot, when I saw a sudden flash of darkness. It was Nico!  
I followed him. He was hard to keep track of, as he would often take sharp turns. He blended in well with the dark walls and floor. But after a few minutes of frustration, I followed him into a corner.  
"Hey, Sunshine," he taunted, without looking behind him. He must have realized I was following him. I thought I was being pretty subtle.  
"Hope you're ready to lose, Deathboy," I replied, stepping forward.  
"I wouldn't be so sure."  
Suddenly, he pushed me up against a wall and was kissing me violently. I was very surprised. He had to stand on his tiptoes to reach my face. It was adorable. 

He stepped back and stared lovingly into my eyes.   
I was about to kiss him again when he smirked and shot me with his laser gun.  
"Oh, come on! That's hardly fair!"   
"All is fair in love and war, Will."  
I squinted at him before I left the laser-arena.


	36. Letters I

Will,  
When I first saw you, I was speechless.  
When I first heard you sing, I was amazed that a son of Apollo could sound so awful.  
But I loved it.  
When I first spoke to you, my heart skipped a beat. You were endearingly aggravating as you made me rest for days in your care.  
When you asked me on a date, you were so flustered, of course I said yes.   
Best choice I ever made.  
When we first kissed, my face flushed red as a rose with desire.  
When you said you loved me, I felt the same.  
When you betrayed me, my tears fell as quickly and heavily as the most incredible storm.  
When you broke my heart, broke my trust, broke my soul, I couldn't speak for hours.  
I opened my heart to you, and got only sadness in return.  
I thought you loved me.   
I thought what we had was special.  
But I was wrong.  
-Nico


	37. Letters II

Nico,  
All I did was eat the last pop tart. I apologized. Come on. I'll get you another box and we can call it even. Love, Will


	38. Little Will

Will POV  
Someone requested a young Will, so here you go!  
Trigger Warning: Transphobia 

 

Snip.  
Snip.  
Snip.  
That's the last of it. Now I look like a boy. I am a boy. But mom says I'm not. I'm a girl named Willow. I like the color pink. I like dresses and makeup and tiaras and sparkles and cute boys and dolls. I do like some of those things, I guess. Pink is cute, just not the best. Yellow is the best, then green, then red. I like cute boys, but if I'm really a boy, I would like girls. That's what Mom said. I like dolls, I can play doctor with them.   
"Boys don't like dresses, Willow." Mom said  
"That's fine. I don't like dresses that much anyway." I had replied. She had then proceeded to scold me, saying, 'You're a girl and girls like dresses.' etc.   
So that's why I'm cutting my hair. Maybe when she sees I can look like a boy, she'll believe that I am a boy! She won't make me wear dresses anymore, and she'll call me Will! 

"WILLOW SOLACE! COME HERE THIS INSTANT!" Oops. Moms sounds mad.   
"Yeah?" She looks at me, shocked and angry.  
"You cut your hair? Now you can't enter the pageant! I cannot begin to describe how disappointed I am in you! YOU. ARE. A. GIRL."  
Now I'm angry. Why won't she listen to me? It's my body. I would know if I was a girl! "NO! I'm a boy! I'm running away!"  
She snarls at me, "Fine! Run, no one will want you! Don't come crawling back to me when you're on death's door! You have five minutes to pack your things, and after that, I will never see you again!"  
I quickly run down the hall, grab my backpack, and start shoving stuff in. Some clothes, my blanket, some scissors, and my money. I bet she thinks I'll come back, I'll admit defeat. The thought almost makes me laugh. Will Solace does not accept defeat. I go to my bedroom door, but it's locked. Maybe she doesn't want me to leave. The joke's on her. I've made up my mind, I'm going, and no one can stop me. I take out the scissors, cutting away the screen in my window before climbing out, falling gently into a bush. And I run.

"What's your name, young lady?" A kind-looking man asks me.  
"My name is Will, and I am a boy. How did you find me?" I've been on my own for about a month now. I walked for a long time. After that, I took a bus with the money I had taken. Now I'm in Ohio, according to the sign I saw yesterday. Lots of...um, creatures have been chasing me.   
"Well, Will, you have to come with me. I know where you can be safe from the monsters." My mother told me not to go with strangers, but she also told me to go away, so she's obviously not one to trust. Plus, I have a good feeling about this guy. I like his pants, they're furry, like a dog's legs. So I go with him. 

Oh god. I'm so tired. I've been running for hours now with Marvin, who actually is a saytr, and wasn't wearing pants. He says if we get to the top of the hill, we'll be safe. When I finally collapse at the top of the hill, I hear Marvin scream for me to run, but I barely hear him, I'm overlooking a field of strawberries. But I do hear him, so I do as he says. As I get closer, a large, blue house materializes in front of me. I knock on the door, desperate for help, when a man in a wheelchair, suddenly next to me (how did I not notice him before?) speaks.   
"Tell me everything, boy."


	39. Little Will Part Two

I sat down on the bench next to the man. He had slightly wild black hair, fiery purple eyes, and a rainbow leopard print shirt. He smiled at me and said he was Mr.D. "And what's your name?" "Will. Will Solace." He nodded. "I understand that Marvin died bringing you here." My eyes filled with tears, "He did? Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry! I'm so sorry! Oh no. Oh God! I..." I burst into tears. "Calm down, son. He'll be reincarnated within a week. No need to be too upset. Of course, I understand why you would regret his death."   
It took me a minute to calm myself down. When I heard that he would come back, I was able to stop crying and get a grip. "Yes, sir. I liked him very much. He believed I was a boy."  
"You are a boy, Wilber." My name is not Wilber, but whatever I guess.  
"Thanks. I appreciate that."  
"Leo Fleper! Come show Wilber around Camp!" A blond haired guy ran up to us. He still had his quiver on his back, as if the had been trying to practice archery, but had been called away. He held out his hand for me to shake. "Hey there! My name is Lee Fletcher, son of Apollo. Who're you?"   
"My name's Will Solace. My Mom is Naomi Solace, and I don't know who my dad is, but Mr. D says he's a god. So that's pretty cool." Lee chuckled. "That's a good start. I'll show you around Camp, and maybe you'll get claimed later. If you're lucky."

I was lucky. A few weeks later, during capture the flag, my friend Malcom got hurt. He was good at making plans, but this time, the blue team had the upper hand. Malcom got stabbed, and he was dying. I didn't know what else to do, I crouched beside him and put my hand on the wound. Then I started singing. I'm not sure how I knew the words, they just came to me as I sang. I didn't even notice other campers gathering around us until Malcom was healed. Chiron walked up to Malcom and I, clearly upset, thinking perhaps that I was the one who had stabbed him. Chiron saw that I had healed him, and probably would have said something if a dome of light hadn't surrounded me. "Apollo!" Chiron shouted. Some people kneeled, most rolled their eyes. But I didn't really care. 

I had a family now. I live with my brothers and sisters, I'm quickly moving up the ranks in the infirmary, and everyone accepts me here. They call me 'he' and 'him' and say that my things are 'his'. It's amazing. I'm very happy here.


	40. Live

⚠️ TRIGGER WARNING ⚠️   
⚠️ Suicide, Depression, Self harm ⚠️   
Mortal AU  
They like each other but they aren't together yet. 

Nico: Hey, Will. I'm so sorry. I can't do this. I'm going to kill myself. Goodbye.  
Will: Nico? How about we meet at the park?   
Will: Nico?  
Nico: Okay

Will sees him sitting on the ground, beneath a tree. His head was in his hands, his back rested against the tree's sturdy trunk. Nico was shaking, sobbing into his hands. Will walked faster. "Hey. It's me." He said. Nico lifted his face. "Hi." He whispered, his voice cracking. You could see that he had been crying. His face was pink and puffy, week old eyeliner and tears running down his cheeks. His hair was a mess. Will loved him just the same. He wished Nico felt better, that there was something he could do. "Nico, hey." He sat next to him. "What's wrong." Nico choked back a sob. "I can't do this anymore." "Why not? Maybe I can help?" "You can't. I'm chronically depressed. One of my sisters is dead. My stepmom hates me, my dad calls me his daughter, I'm a just a pathetic, weak, gay boy. I am nothing."  
"Nico. You are something. The only way you can be nothing is if you let everything slip away. There are reasons to live."  
"Are there?" He looks back up to Will, his tear filled eyes meeting blue ones. "Or is that just something people say to make you feel better. Like cutting. It feels good, but it's a lie. It doesn't help. It makes you feel good for a minute, then bam. Gone." He pauses. "Can you actually give me one good reason to live?"  
"Please, there are so many things you haven't done. You've always wanted to try rolled ice cream, to go to Trans pride, to get your books published. If you die, you won't be able to do any of it." Will didn't want to make this about him. But maybe it would work, it was true. "And because I love you. And if you leave, I won't be able to survive. Life has so much to offer, and God help me I will not let you throw it all away! Live, please. Live for me." Will was concerned about what he would do when the smaller boy reacted poorly, but Nico looked up and nodded. "Okay." He took multiple deep breaths. "I will."

Time skip ten years

"I used to be a scared, depressed teenager. Now I'm in a much better place. I have a husband, a home, and three bestselling books. It gets better, just look at me." Nico stepped away from the microphone and walked backstage. There were a few other speakers, all giving speeches and signing their books. It was amazing. Nico thought back to the night exactly ten years before. That was in the past. He was happy now. Will hadn't healed his depression, no one can heal depression, but he convinced him to get on medication. To talk when he was in a bad place. To let people in. Nico walked back to his car after signing a few dozen copies of his most recent book. Will was already there, waiting in the driver's seat. "Nico! Hey! I'm so proud of you! You did great." Ten years, and Will still supported him. "Thank you." Nico wrapped his husband in a hug. He didn't understand why Will loved him, but he was glad he did. "What?" Will asked. "Why?"  
"For being there. For saving me. For loving me. For, I don't know, keeping me green."   
Will snorted. "God, Neeks! 'Keeping me green' You've been listening to waaayyy too many podcasts." Nico grinned and shoved him playfully. "Shut up." Will smiled and laughed. "No, you shut up."

AN// Based off a tumblr prompt. I wanted to show suicidal Nico who doesn't kill himself, but his depression isn't healed by Will. Because that's not how it works.


	41. Love Doctor

Nico's Point Of View  
(Italics are spoken in Italian)

 

It was my second day in the infirmary. I could hear voices speaking in Italian. I knew Apollo children could speak the language.  
"I can understand why Will likes him. He's really cute."  
So Will did like guys. That's good news. But he liked someone already, and that's totally okay. I don't like him either. That's what I tried to tell myself, anyway. When I was honest with myself, I knew I did like him. A lot.  
"Yeah. He is the cutest boy I've ever seen. And I've seen a lot of cute people."  
I wanted to date Will, but at least no one called me cute. I'm not cute. I AM DEATH! Still, I wondered who they were talking about. Maybe Jason.  
"He knew about both camps before anyone else." They must be confused. Jason wasn't the first. The gods were first, then me. It wasn't exactly something to brag about. "Hey, I knew about the Romans. I totally left you in the dark! Love me!" That would be weird.   
"Oh," An Apollo girl was looking at me ,"Nico, glad you're awake. I'm Kayla. Do you need anything?"  
"No thanks."  
"You two are right. He's incredibly hot. What do you think?" I was about to ask what she was talking about. I realized that they didn't know I was from Italy. She wasn't talking to me.

Will walked in with his beautiful freckled face and eyes as blue as an eternal ocean of joy. What I wouldn't give to stare at those eyes for hours.  
"These walls are thin, guys. I can hear you all the way down the hall. Do you want him to find out I like him?"   
Kayla shook her head. "It's not like Nico can understand us."  
Me? Will liked me? I smiled and blushed.   
Will looked upset. "But what if he could? Anyway, Kayla, I'd love to talk about crushes with you, but I have to give a check-up."  
Kayla smirked, "Goodbye, Love-Doctor."

Will turned to me and smiled.   
"Hey, Deathboy."   
"Don't call me Deathboy."  
"Okay, fine. Instead I will call you..."  
How about boyfriend, I thought.  
"Spooks! Perfect! Now take off your shirt so I can check your werewolf scratches."  
I blushed and took off my shirt. He took my temperature and heartbeat. It was faster than usual. I wonder why? It couldn't be that a cute boy was looking at me without a shirt.   
Will spoke, snapping me out of my trance, "Your scratches are healing really well. They'll be gone in a few weeks. You can leave tomorrow morning."  
I was glad to leave the infirmary, but it meant I wouldn't be able to see Will as often. I had put my shirt back on and was about to leave.  
"And," Will added nervously ,"Would you like to go out on a date with me?"  
I decided to mess with him. "Sure, Mr. Love-doctor. That would be great."  
Will became awfully embarrassed, turning pink and looking sheepish. "You heard all that?"  
"Yes. I lived in Italy for years before I came here, Will. But your siblings' chatter was rather cute. I hope they weren't lying about how much you like me."  
Will grinned, "They weren't. I really like you a lot."


	42. Mafia

It's a dark, slightly warm September night. I'm currently walking back to my cabin for the night. Ugh. I'm so tired. I'm almost at my cabin when I'm confronted. Piper, Percy, Leo, and Jason have cornered me. "We know your secret."  
"You do?" I have a lot of secrets. I've been dating Will for almost a year, but my friends had only known for about a week. I love making flags, I even have an Etsy shop so I can sell them online. Annabeth owns one, but she doesn't know it was made by me. She paid shipping for nothing, I just put it on the doorstep of the Athena Cabin.

I used to keep a dream journal, but it turned out I hated writing the trauma that replayed inside my head every night. Big surprise. I do, however, love painting my dreams onto canvas.  
"Yeah." Percy says, snapping me out of my daze. "We know you're in the mafia!"  
"What? Why?"  
"Um, because it's obvious. You're a creepy Italian American guy."  
"Wow. Rude. That's so messed up." I complain.   
"Then let us search your cabin." Piper says. I roll my eyes. "I'm gay, Piper. Charmspeak doesn't work on me." I don't know why she always forgets this.  
"Does Will know you're in the mob?"  
"I'm not in the mob."  
"Then why can't we search your cabin?"  
"Because my cabin is my personal space? I don't even let Will look through my stuff."   
"You don't?" Jason looked alarmed. "You don't trust him?"  
"I do trust him. And he trusts me, so he doesn't feel the need to go through my things."  
"Yeah, of course you believe in trust. Because mobsters rely on each other!" Piper shouts.  
"I'm not a mobster. Where did you even get that idea?" I sigh. "Never mind. I'm going to bed."  
"With Will?"   
"No."

"They thought you were in the mob?" Will asked.  
"Yep." I respond.   
"Why?"  
"Because I'm a an Italian American boy who has many secrets. Apparently, I'm creepy and antisocial."  
"I mean," Will says carefully, as if he's calculating every word before he says them. "All those things are true. But you aren't in the mafia. You would've told me. Then I'd be dragged into it, and I'd be a mob doctor, and we'd be a hot mafia couple. It'd be so cool! And oh my gods! You'd be such a cute mafia boss!" He's so cute when he's excited. I love him so much.   
"I appreciate that you support my alter ego, but you're missing the point."  
"Well, what's the point?" Dam. That's where I went wrong. I said that wasn't the point, but I'm not sure what the point is. "Um.... The point is that I love you!" I like to think I wrapped that up nicely.  
"Nope." He said. Maybe I didn't wrap it up as well as I thought. "The point was that Piper, Jason, Leo, and Percy are creepy weirdos who stereotype people. The fact that you love me is just a bonus." He kisses me. "You're so cute!"   
I blush. I mumble that I think he's cute too, but he doesn't hear me. He's busy fangirling over if we were a hot mafia couple. I love this boy.

Headcanon time! I've always imagined that Nico loves making flags. It started when there was a CHB flag making contest. Read more in my fic, 'Flags'


	43. Meeting Hades

Apollo had left the day before. Will and Nico were talking about who's parents were more embarrassing.  
"Hades once suggested I kidnap Percy and hold him hostage!"  
"But that's nothing compared to my dad! You've met him!"  
"I'm so glad your dad's gone," Nico said.  
"Yeah. I'm a little worried about him, but mostly relieved. He can't walk in on us anymore when we're doing this..."  
Nico barely had time to think "Doing what?" When Will pushed him up against a wall and starting kissing him intensely.  
Nico was surprised, but he loved it.   
"I love you, Nico DiAngelo."  
"I love you too, Sunshine."  
They were about to kiss again when Will felt the floor falling beneath him. He thought he was simply light headed from the kiss. But then Nico said,  
"Ugh, not again."

They appeared in Hades' throne room.   
"Gods, Dad. What do you want?"  
"I simply heard my name. I wanted to clarify that I said to kidnap Percy, not hold him hostage. That implies that you would let him go for a price. You would be able to be with him forever. But anyway, I summoned you because I wanted to meet your boyfriend.  
"You were watching us?" Nico sounded quite annoyed.  
"If you don't want me to listen, you shouldn't draw my attention by saying my name. Now, how about I get to know your new boyfriend over dinner."  
"He can't eat the food here."  
"That is a bit problematic. I'll have a skeleton get some food from the upper-world."

*Time skip 15 minutes to dinner*  
"So you're a child of Apollo, yes?"  
"Yes, Lord Hades." Will replied anxiously. He couldn't believe that he was speaking to the god of the Underworld, yet he was still alive.  
"Will is a very good healer." Nico chimed in helpfully.  
"What else do you like to do in your free time?" Hades inquired.  
"Sometimes I practice archery, but I'm not very good at it." Will was incredibly nervous that he might say the wrong thing. "I like playing Mytho-Magic with Nico."  
"Just so you know, if you ever hurt Nico in any way, I will personally reserve a place for you in the Fields of Punishment. Are we clear."  
Will paled. "Yes, Lord Hades."  
"Dad! Please stop threatening my boyfriend."  
"I just want to make sure this one is good enough, unlike that Percy fellow. So rude. But Will seems...adequate."  
Will looked very uncomfortable. Most likely because he was. He felt like he was going to be sick.  
"Where's your bathroom?"  
"Down the hall and to the left."   
"Thanks."

Immediately after Will left Nico asked, "Why are you doing this?"  
"Doing what?"  
"Making Will feel so uncomfortable."  
"Because if he truly loves you, he will stay here all of dinner to be with you. And if he leaves, you know he doesn't like you enough."

They didn't know that Will, with his Child-Of-Apollo hearing, knew what they were saying.  
He went back into the dining hall and said,   
"I love Nico enough to stay through any situation."   
Nico blushed.  
"He's the one you should kidnap."  
"Dad!"


	44. Milkshakes & Poptarts

"I'm so happy you agreed to go out with me." Will smiled, sipping his milkshake.  
"I'm glad, too." Nico responded, "But I've never had a boyfriend before. I'm not exactly sure what to do."   
"Just do what you normally do. I'm still me, and you're still you. We're just dating now." Nico nodded his head, glancing around the shop. "Oh. Yeah, okay."

"Kiiisssssssssss." Will heard from behind Nico. He looked up and saw something disturbing. "Nico, don't panic, but Jason is behind you." Jason walked out of his booth and sat right next to Will, uncomfortably close.  
"Jason," Nico asked flatly, "Why are you here?" Jason feigned offense. "I am here to make sure this one," He pointed to Will, "Doesn't try anything." Will scooted further from Jason. "Jason, you know me. What in Olympus would I do? Even if I 'tried anything', Nico could destroy me."   
"I wouldn't though. That's how much I like you." Nico said.   
"Aw!" Will put his hand over his heart. "That is the sweetest thing I've ever heard."   
Jason cleared his throat angrily. "I can't believe this is happening. You two are on a date and you didn't invite me along." "Why would we invite you along?" "Because I love you guys. You're gay icons!" Nico smacked his head down onto the table, earning a flinch from Will and several other people's stares. Suddenly, Nico's head popped back up. "Jason, do you want a milkshake? Will can go get you one." 

Will squeezed past Jason to get him a milkshake, when Nico ran next to him, grabbing his hand and dashing out the door. "Aah! Nico, what are you doing?" Nico plunged into a shadow, taking Will with him, and they appeared in Nico's cabin. Nico took several deep breaths. "Sorry about that. I wanted to get away from Jason."   
Will nodded. "Yeah, he's kind of a creep." Nico sat on the ground and pulled a box of Pop-Tarts out from under his bed. "Wanna watch a movie and eat Pop-Tarts?" Will grinned. "Hades yeah."


	45. Mozzarella Sticks

I look across the loud, bright bar that Piper and Percy dragged me to. They say I need to get out there. I tell them that they're idiots who need to butt out of my dating life. And yet, I still let them drag me to a bar. 

"Nico," Piper says. "You see that guy over there?" She points to a man sitting alone at the bar, sipping a drink. I totally haven't been creepily staring at him for the last six minutes. "Go hit on him."  
"Ugh." I groan. "I'm just going to mess it up."  
"Not if I'm in your ear, telling you the exact right things to say." Piper responds as she hands me a walkie talkie. "What you have to do is ask if you can buy him a drink."   
"Then what?" I ask.   
"Then he'll start flirting with you. If something goes wrong, buzz me." She holds up her own walkie talkie and pushes me into the fray. 

"Hi." I say to the handsome guy in front of me. He turns back to look at me.   
"Hi! I'm Will."   
"Can I buy you a drink?" I ask. He frowns.  
"Sorry, I already have a drink. But I'd love some mozzarella sticks." I turn around away from him and slyly speak into the walkie talkie. "Piper. He already has a drink. Can I buy him mozzarella sticks?"  
"Dude." Piper's voice says. "Just sit next to him and flirt. It's not that hard."  
"But now I really want mozzarella sticks." I respond. Piper sighs audibly. "Well then, get both of you some mozzarella sticks!"  
"But you said to get him a drink."   
"You're an idiot." I'm not trying to be an idiot. I've never successfully flirted with someone before. 

I turn back around to Will, who's watching amusedly.   
"So," I say. "My friend has abandoned me. So I'm probably going to mess this up. But I would love to get mozzarella sticks with you." I sit on the stool next to him and order two bags of mozzarella sticks.   
"So," He says, smiling eagerly, "What was that about?" Dangit. I'm not as sly as I thought I was.  
"My friend Piper saw me creepily staring at you. She told me to flirt with you, and she said she would tell me what to say. But she's a liar." Will nodded. "I feel you." He stuffs some mozzarella stick into his mouth. "Thanks for the mozzarella sticks."   
"You're welcome." I respond. "My name's Nico, by the way."   
"Ask him if he wants to go out sometime." Piper's voice rings from my pocket.   
"Piper, you aren't being quiet." I respond. "He can hear you." I turn off the walkie talkie and continue talking to Will. Thanks, Piper, but I think I've got this one in the bag.


	46. My Fault

WPOV  
They died on my watch. I was supposed to save them. That was my only job, and I failed. My brothers Lee and Michael, Castor, Naomi, Samantha, Christine, Quinn, Natasha, Adam, John, Madeline, Joan.......... Those are just a few people I let die. I let them die. Castor died during the battle before Manhattan, as did Lee, but the others died during Manhattan. I can't count all the almost-deaths. There were so many. And they were all because of me.

"Will. You can't blame yourself. You did your best, and—"  
"And that wasn't good enough."  
"Will." Nico continued, "They do not blame you. And you shouldn't blame yourself. And yes, you were supposed to heal them, but some of them couldn't be healed. Chloe was half dead when they brought her to you. She was beyond saving, just like most of the others."  
"What about the ones that weren't beyond saving? I killed them."   
"You aren't responsible for their deaths. They told me themselves. Plus, the infirmary was overrun. You had to many patients, too little time and supplies."  
"If I had just worked a little harder, pushed myself a little further, I—"  
"You were pushing yourself too much already. You once told me, and I quote, 'We know, but if you're planning to shadow-travel to that command tent, forget it.  Even if you made it to that tent, you'd be in no shape to fight. But you wouldn't make it. One more slip, and you won't come back. You are not shadow-traveling. Doctors orders.' I expected you to look away when I glared, to become a scared of me, but you didn't. You told me that I couldn't push myself any further, or my name would be added to the list of casualties. I didn't care, just like you don't care now. But you cared about me, and you didn't let me shadow travel. I was so mad. But that's love. Sometimes you have to tell people what they don't want to hear. And if you worked any harder, you would slip away, and you wouldn't come back."   
"Okay." I replied, "so I know this off topic, but you memorized what I said to you? That's so cute!"  
"I'm glad I could help distract you. If you ever need to talk, I'm here. This relationship isn't a one way street. You make me talk about stuff to you, and now I'm going to make you talk about stuff with me. Because I love you."  
"I love you, too."


	47. Nico’s Butt

AN// This is based off a story someone told at Pflag yesterday. His mom was Persephone in this scenario.

"I'm gay." I said.  
Hades looked at me. I couldn't place the emotion on his face. Persephone however looked at me with pity in her eyes. "Oh, you poor thing. I feel sorry for your butt." She stood up, winked at me, and left the room.   
"What the Hades?" I thought aloud.  
Hades shook his head. "I don't know. No one knows."  
"Can I come out now?" Said a voice underneath the table. "Not like, the gay kind, but the I-snuck-under-the-table-while-you-weren't-looking kind."   
"Will? Are you under the table?"   
"Nnnnnooooooooo." Will denied.  
"Gods dammit Will!" Nico shouted, banging his head on the table.  
"I'm sorry. It seemed like a good idea at a time."  
"How?"  
"I don't know."  
"Can you leave?"  
"Yeah. Okay. Sorry." Will crawled out from under the table. A confused look crossed his face, and he said, "I don't know the way out of the underworld."  
"I love you, but seriously, fuck you."  
"Later. But for now, how do I leave?"   
"See?" Persephone screamed from the other room. "Poor Nico's butt!" Hades took a deep breath and left the room.

"But you've got to admit, he's pretty hot." Persephone said to her husband.  
"Aren't you married? To me?" Hades grumbled.  
"I'm married, not blind, dear."  
"Oooh! You're in love with little William!" A servant ghost teased. The ghost did not survive the encounter. 

"Why?" Nico asked.  
"It seemed like a good idea at the time."  
"You've already said that countless times. Why did it seem like a good idea?" Will shifted his feet. "I thought maybe your dad wouldn't react well, and I could be there to show my support."  
"OH MY F-ING GODS!" Screamed a voice from above. "THAT'S SO SWEET!"   
"I KNOW RIGHT!"  
"Jason? Enrique? Why are you in our vent again?"  
"We're not us."  
"That's the most stupid thing you can say. 'We are not us.' You have to be yourselves to call yourselves 'us.'"   
"Well," Will added, "Now my sneaking into the underworld doesn't seem so bad!" He paused. "Still though, guys. Get out of this cabin."


	48. Nico’s Texts

•Hazel•  
Hazel: You were the only family I ever knew. I trusted you to protect me. But you were never the protector. You were the one from whom I need protection. I trusted you, and in return, you shattered me. And it took me years to put the pieces back together.  
Nico: What?  
Hazel: You heard me.  
Nico: Is this because I couldn't make it to your party last week? I had to take the SATs.   
Hazel: If you loved me you would make time for me.  
Nico: I told you months in advance that I wasn't available that day, still scheduled the party. Now you're upset that he couldn't show up? What was the party even for?   
Hazel: I bought a new set of teacups  
Nico: Hazel, why are you still mad? I told you I couldn't be there.  
Hazel: Well, your boyfriend came.  
Nico: 1-Don't let Enrique see that. 2- Will and I aren't physically connected? We are different people.  
Hazel: Obviously. You betrayed me. And I will never forgive you.  
Nico: What if we go get ice cream this weekend?  
Hazel:........fine

•Will•  
Will: I swear I'm going to kill Percy.  
Nico: Good choice! But, if I may ask, why?  
Will: Because he stole all the bandages again.   
Nico: That doesn't sound too bad.  
Will: He used them to wax his legs.  
Nico:...............wtf?  
Will: He said 'the plume of Percy needs to be contained.  
Nico: Is this when you smacked him?  
Will: Not yet.  
Nico: So you did smack him?  
Will: Obviously. Please stop interrupting. I told him to put back the unused bandages, and he stuck his tongue out at me like a toddler. I don't get how you could ever have been in love with him. It really makes me reevaluate my perception of myself.  
Nico: WHO TOLD YOU I USED TO LIKE HIM??!!!?!!?  
Will: You sleep talk.  
Nico: What exactly did I say?  
Will: You said 'Percy's hot but ugh. Not my type. Will instead. Ugh. Gaaaaayyyy.' It was weird but cute.   
Nico: Please kill me now.  
Will: I won't let you escape that easily.  
Nico: That's a pretty creepy thing to say. You've been spending too much time around me.  
Will: Because you get hurt so much.  
Nico: You know that's not the only reason.  
Will: It's true though.  
Nico: Yeah. You're a great healer (+1 ego)  
Will: I knew there was a reason you kept me around. (Also, I'm choosing to ignore the snark.)  
Nico: Do you want to come by my cabin later?  
Will: I'd love to! I'll bring a bucket full of stuff!  
Nico: What kind of stuff?  
Will: Mostly snacks. And a lot of warm blankets.   
Nico: Sounds great! See you later   
Will: Love you! Bye!

•Reyna•  
Reyna: Care to explain?  
Nico: Um? Explained what?  
Reyna: Why you only just now told me about you and Will?  
Nico: We haven't been dating that long.  
Reyna: LIES!   
Nico: Fine. We've been dating a while, and I wanted to tell you, but you're......intimidating.  
Reyna: I will crush his soul.  
Nico: Wow. Take it down a few hundred notches, please?  
Reyna: I will slit him open from mouth to anus and wear him like a jacket.   
Nico: WHAT THE ACTUAL HADES  
Reyna: Sorry. I'm a little overprotective.  
Nico: No kidding  
Reyna: But seriously, tell me if he hurts you.  
Nico: I can handle myself.  
Reyna: Still, I order you to tell me.  
Nico: I'm not one of your soldiers.  
Reyna: And I'm not there with you. Annabeth would tell me even if you didn't.  
Nico: Touché.

•Piper•  
Nico: I'm in love with you.  
Piper: ????????  
Nico: oops wrong person  
Piper: NICO WHAT THE FUCK WHO ARE YOU IN LOVE WITH?!??!?

•Jason•  
Nico: Jason, I swear, if I catch you spying on me from a vent one more time, I will murder you slowly and I will feel no remorse.  
Jason: Hmm. Graphic. Fine. I won't hide in your vents anymore.  
Nico: You won't hide anywhere to spy on me.  
Jason: Yeah, sure.


	49. Nightmare Children

Nico didn't like children very much. Will loved them. Neither of them wanted to have kids of their own, but they often watched their friends'. Percy and Annabeth's children, Ada, Ruth, and Elenor, Hazel and Frank's child, Emily, and Piper and Jason's children, Ceil and Bella. They were all about 7-10 years old, except for Emily, who was two. Nico loved them, he guessed. But they were nightmare children. Even Will agreed.

"I'm home!" Will yells, entering their home. "I've got ice cream!" He obviously didn't know the children were over. They crowd around him, reaching for the grocery bags and screaming "ICE CREAM ICE CREAM ICE CREAM"

Will had had a long day. Since it was flu season, he had an increase in patients. He had listened to children complain all day, and he wanted a break. He wanted to sit in bed and eat ice cream with his husband. But no, because nothing could ever be easy. The children were climbing all over their flat. Will knew the people living below them would complain about the noise, but at the moment, he barely cared. He did care that Ruth had gotten the ice cream and started plunging her hands into the slightly melty blob, pulling out clumps and shoving it in her mouth. The other children followed, getting the floor sticky in the process. He heard the sound of glass breaking, a baby crying, and Nico shouting, "Why are you like this, Ceil?!" Will decided that the ice cream monsters could handle themselves, so he went to help Nico. 

Nico was so done with these kids. Ceil had broken a snow globe (where did he even find that?) Glass was all over the floor. Nico was getting a broom to clean it up, when Emily stumbled into it. Nico was sure he had closed the door, but he obviously hadn't. Or maybe Emily had learned how to open doors. Either way, Emily was crying in their bedroom, a few shallow cuts on her pudgy baby legs. Nico handed her to Will. "You're a pediatrician! Fix this child." When Will left to patch up Emily, Nico saw Ceil rummaging through his and Will's dresser. "What's this?" Ceil asked, smiling cheekily as he held up a blind fold. "Um.... a necktie." Ceil held up a pair of handcuffs. "Are you a police officer?" "Um... yes. That's why I have those." Nico picked up Ceil and dragged him to the kitchen, where the others were gorging on floor goo. Nico thought it was melted ice cream, but he wasn't sure. "What are you guys eating?" He asked. Elenor stuck her tongue out at him. Natural selection, he supposed. What do you think is gonna happen if you eat floor goo? Will entered the kitchen.   
"Will, what is this?" Nico asked.  
"Ice cream." Nico decided to not ask further questions. He didn't want to know the answer.   
"Uncle Will! Uncle Will!" Ceil yelled.   
"What? Did you kill something? What did you kill?" Will responded. To be fair, he had had a bad day. You can't blame him for being cynical.  
"Did you know uncle Nico isn't really a book person? He's a police officer!" Ceil said to Will excitedly. "What? No, why do you think that?" "Because he has handcuffs! For bad people to go to jail! Duh! Did you not know your husband's job? My Daddy and Mommy trust each other."  
Will looked to Nico and smirked. Nico blushed. "Yes. Handcuffs. For very bad people."  
"Uncle Nico, why is your face pink?"  
"Eat your floor goo, child!" Ceil went and ate his floor goo.

Everything was starting to wind down. Will had put a movie on their tv, and the kids loved it. Mostly, anyway.   
"This is so lame." Ruth complained.  
"This isn't historically accurate." Said Ada.  
"Put on the bachelor!" Bella charmspoke.  
"No. Keep this movie playing." Ceil also charmspoke. That's what happens when two grandchildren of Aphrodite are in the same place. Conflict. And an eventual fist fight that leads to calling Piper.

Nico: Your children are demon children. Please come take your monsters.  
Piper: Excuse me?  
Nico: Ceil just punched Bella   
Nico: Bella bit him  
Nico: Will and I are betting on who will win.  
Nico: I'm betting Ceil, but Will says Bella has unlocked potential.  
Piper: Can't you just break up the fight?  
Nico: Actually, this is pretty cool. I think I'm going to spice it up a bit with chopsticks.  
Piper: Fine. Don't give them chopsticks, we'll be there in 10.  
Nico: Let's hope they survive that long.  
Nico: Tell Percy to get his kids, too.  
Piper: Percy says he's not here.  
Nico: Tell him his kids are getting  forks  
Piper: Percy's coming.

"Listen up you little monsters!" Will shouts from atop a counter. "Except for you, Emily. You're an angel and we're happy to have you here. Everyone else, your parents are coming and you're all going home!" 

Percy arrived first. "Hey, Will. Hey, Nico. Sorry if they were, ya know, themselves." He left, but he was back a moment later.   
"What's floor goo?" He asked obviously concerned that his children had eaten something dangerous.  
"It's melted ice cream Ruth poured on the floor." Percy nodded and left for real.

Piper arrived next, along with Hazel and Frank. "Hazel, Frank. You guys didn't have to come. Emily's great." Frank smiled and picked up their child. Hazel kissed Nico's cheek and left. 

"Hey Ceil! Hey Bella! Who won the fight?" Piper asked.  
"No one." Bella said grumpily. "Uncle Will said if we kept fighting we would get eaten by the monster under our beds. So we stopped. Now I'm scared." As they left, Ceil rolled his eyes. "You're such a baby. I'll protect you. I'm going to be a police officer. Just like Uncle Nico." Piper looked back at Nico. "A police officer?" "Yeah. He kept it a secret, but I found his handcuffs."   
"Let's go home."

"They found the handcuffs? And you said you were a policeman? What else?" Will asked as they cleaned up their apartment.   
"He took out your blindfold. I said it was a necktie. Didn't I tell you to lock that drawer?"   
"I locked the other drawer."  
"The one that holds socks? Why would I need that to be locked?"  
"It made sense at the time. Plus, you're one to talk, Mr. Police officer."  
"I panicked, Will. What would you have said?"  
"I would have explained sexuality and the joy of intimacy."   
"Will. What the hell?"  
"I'm a doctor, babe."  
"Are you? I had no idea." Nico said sarcastically.  
"Shut up." Complained Will.  
"Make me."  
"Oh, I will."  
Thank the gods for 'neckties.’


	50. Nightmare Children Part Two

"Uncle Nico? Are you sick?" Bella asked. Nico and Will were watching Bella for the weekend so Piper could take a vacation. For the record, Piper really sprung this on them.   
"No. Why?" Nico asked.  
"Because you got hurt last night. You were moaning and panting and whimpering like you were in pain."   
Why, Nico thought, is it always Piper's kids that care about his sex life? Maybe it was an Aphrodite thing? Last time, Ceil, Bella's brother, had pulled out handcuffs and asked about them. So Nico said he was a police officer, and made sure to lock their bedroom drawers from then on. Ceil wasn't here now, But Nico wasn't sure how he would get out of this. "I broke my leg. But it's better now."  
Bella looked satisfied. "Oh. Okay." Will walked into the room. "Uncle Will! Guess what? Uncle Nico broke his leg last night!"  
Will looked confused. "No. Nico's fine. Why do you think that?"  
"Cuz' he was hurt yesterday. And that's why he was moaning and stuff last night. Duh. Didn't he tell you? Aren't you supposed to love and trust each other with that kind of thing?" Again, maybe judging other people's relationships was an Aphrodite thing. Maybe Bella and Ceil were nightmare children. Maybe both.   
"Oh. Um." Will stammered before explaining, "Well, Bella, when two people love each other very much, they get together and—" "Who wants ice cream?" Nico shouted, cutting off Will. He did not think Jason and Piper would be happy if their kids came home knowing about such things.   
"I do!" Bella yelled. Thank the gods for ice cream.

"Mom! Guess what! Uncle Nico broke his leg because he loves uncle Will very much!"   
Piper looked confused. "What?"  
"That's why he was upset last night! Cuz' he broke his leg! It's because he loves Uncle Will very much and they got together and ate ice cream! Uncle Will told me!"   
Piper glared at Will. "Did he now?"  
"Yep!"  
"That isn't what I was trying to say!" Will protested, "I was trying to talk about—"  
"My husband is a doctor!" Nico interrupted loudly. He didn't mind talking about sex, but Bella was, what, eight? Nine? Nico wasn't sure. He had a lot of birthdays to keep up with. "So, Piper, you can imagine what he was going to say."  
"What?" Piper said, clearly upset with the situation she was in. "You mean to tell me that you two had sex when my child was here?"  
"What's sex?" Bella asked.  
"Well," Will started, "Sex is when two people love each oth-"  
"Shove off, Piper! You didn't ask if you could bring her here! You just brought her to us and left for two days! Will and I aren't going to change our lifestyle for you! You never changed it for Will and I."  
"I've never gotten freaky when you slept at my house!"  
"Oh, that's rich. Remember that time I woke up in the middle of night because you were yelling 'faster, Babe, faster!' Hmmm?"  
Pipers face went red. She took Bella's hand. "Goodbye, Nico. Goodbye Will." And she left.

"Why did you keep trying to give Piper's kid the talk?"  
"Why did you have to be so loud last night?"  
"You love it."  
"That's besides the point."  
"It's true though."  
"You told her you broke your leg?"  
"Yeah. What would you have done? Never mind, you were there, it was awful."  
"Okay, so I tell children the truth and you lie. Just bad habits. We can deal with it."  
"Our bad habits fit well together."  
"You know what else fits well together?"  
"Wha— oh. Yes please."


	51. Ninety-Seven

Nico's POV  
"Rude. I'm only 97."  
The words I never wanted to hear. But not now, please god not now. I can't deal with this right now. He's the only thing in life that keeps me going, but I had to joke about his age. Now he's dying. Here's how it went.

Will and I were walking around the city, taking in the sights, leisurely sipping coffee. Will said something along the lines of, "I'm so tired." I had replied with, "That's because you're an old man. You're, like, a hundred years old."  
That's when he looked at me, put his coffee-free hand on his hip, and said in an extremely sassy tone, "Rude. I'm only 97."

Everyone has their soulmate's last words tattooed on their body. No one else can see them, and for some reason, it's impossible to tell anyone. Your voice just stops working. But I thought he would actually be 97 when he died. I had no doubt Will was my soulmate, and I was excited about growing old together. He would die happy, slightly sarcastically, when was 97. That's 71 years away. Or, that's what was supposed to happen. But what happened was this:

A bullet comes flying through the air, about to hit Will's chest. He wouldn't have noticed, but I push him out of the way, sacrificing myself instead. The corners of my vision start to darken. I hear police sirens, ambulance sirens screaming in the distance. I see Will sobbing over my dying body, and I realize something. The words aren't necessarily the last words your soulmate says, but the last ones you hear. Maybe Will will say something else. Then I won't die, and he won't die, and we'll grow old together! He opens his mouth to say something, but I don't hear it. The world goes dark, I pass out. And I don't wake up again.


	52. Not Your Fault

Trigger Warning: Rape

"Hey, so, um, I've got something to tell you." Will said.  
"What is it? You always overreact to these kinds of things like oh Nico I'm a stripper now that time you had to heal someone in a strip club and everyone threw money at you and yelled 'take off your shirt hot stuff' and 'yeah wiggle that ass.'" Nico responded.  
"Please don't bring that up. And no, this is worse. I think I might have.... had sex with someone else."  
Nico stood up and slapped Will across the face. They had a rule; no violence. But they also had a 'don't sleep with anyone else' rule.  
"What the fuck? I thought you loved me! Did you ever even mean it when you told me that you loved me? No, I bet you didn't. I can't believe this? Why? Why would you do this?   
Nico sits back down on the bed next to Will and starts sobbing. Will awkwardly pats nico's shoulders   
"I'm so sorry. I know I'm in the wrong here. But I think he put something in my drink. I don't know what to do, but love, I'm so sorry."  
Nico looked up to Will.  
"Will. Are you saying you were drugged?"  
"Yes. Are you going to break up with me? I'm so sorry. Oh gods I deserve this."  
"William," Nico said sternly. "You are not at fault here. You were raped. This is not your fault, and I will not break up with you for this. I will help you get revenge. Because you are the victim here. And I fucking love you."  
"Really?"  
"Of course! First, we need to go to Reyna. She'll know what to do. But don't tell her you cheated on me."  
"I thought you said it wasn't my fault."  
"It's not. What I'm saying is that you should phrase it differently."  
"I kinda think she'll hate me."  
"Don't worry. She's Reyna. Reyna can and will fix everything."

" YOU WHAT?!?" Reyna screamed.  
"I slept with not Nico" Will repeated.  
"No. I mean yeah. But not really" Nico explained.  
"I told you that if you ever hurt him I would murder you and dye my hair red with your blood. And that, Will, is exactly what I- wait what do you mean by not really?"  
"My boyfriend was raped." Nico  
Guilt spread across Reyna's face.   
"Oh gods. I'm so sorry, Will. I will do everything in my power to fix this. And if I don't have enough power, I will gain the power. And I will destroy him. What did he look like?"

AN/// So this may not be very good but I'm tired of reading fics in which person A is raped and person B breaks up with them for it.


	53. Ophicleide

Will's siblings snickered as he ran around the cabin. "Oh my gods, Will." Kayla sighed. "It's just Nico." "I know it's Nico! It's not that, it's that I can't find my ophicleide! You can't serenade someone with an ophicleide without an ophicleide!" "You can't serenade someone with an ophicleide even if you do have an ophicleide. It's not a cool instrument." Kayla pointed out. "I think it's sexy." Austin said.   
"Okay, first of all, Austin, no one asked. And secondly, I found it." 

Will held up his ophicleide and ran out the door, bumping into his boyfriend. "Oh, sorry." He said, helping his boyfriend off the ground. "But guess what? I found my ophicleide so now I can serenade you under the moonlight." "Serenade me?" Nico asked. "With an ophicleide? Under the moonlight? First of all, an ophicleide isn't cool."   
"Austin thinks it's sexy!" Will exclaimed before realizing what he was saying. An odd expression showed on Nico's face. "Okay? Good for Austin, I guess. He's wrong, but whatever. Second, what moonlight? It's 1pm."  
"Eh." Will shrugged. "Love finds a way."


	54. Parents’ Night

"Apollo, I swear on the river phlegethon that if you do not shut up I will kill you."  
That shut him up, if only for a second. My stepmom, Persephone had accidentally created an Iris message, so Will and I were watching our parents talk about us. So far, Apollo had been even more annoying than Andy Bernard. Whenever I mention pop culture people are like, 'Woah, man! Aren't you like, 90?' It's really annoying yes, I was born in the 20's, but I'm still 15!   
Sorry, I got distracted for a minute there. I'm adhd, it happens. Anyway, Apollo was standing atop my father's dining room table, dressed in large, puffy, Shakespeare-ey pants. He was pronouncing loudly that he approved of Will's 'Smush-Buddy' (what is wrong with you, Apollo?) and he felt as if he should leave a dead bird in my bed as a reward for choosing his son over all the others. Just for the record, I do not want a dead bird. Why do people always think I want dead birds? That's so obscure, and yet people always come up to me like, here, have my dead bird. Did Jason tape a sign to my back that says 'DISPOSE OF DEAD BIRDS HERE!'   
I'm sick of it. And now Apollo was going to give me another dead bird. Just my luck.

"No! My son does not want more dead birds! No one wants your dead birds! Why don't you understand this?!? It's not that hard!" Hades yelled as Apollo raised his eyebrows.   
"It's not that hard? Name of your sex tape."  
Persephone slammed her hand down onto the table, "How dare you! Hades has a fine penis! Unlike your son, I bet!"  
At the mention of his penis Hades stood up, and walked out of the room muttering, "Nope! Nope! Nope!"  
Apollo looked shocked. "How dare you speak poorly of my son!"  
Persephone glowered. "I bet my stepson has a charming dick."  
It was weird for Will and I because   
1\. What the fuck, Apollo? Just.... What?  
2\. And Persephone? I expected more from you! You bet I have a 'charming dick?' What the actual Styx?!?  
3\. Neither of us have dicks? We're both transgender?   
4\. Even if we did have dicks, it would be none of your dam business!   
Okay. Okay. I'm chill. But just image your stepmom (who's also the goddess of spring time, like every other step mother) saying that. Just sit on that thought for a while. It's disturbing. Will agreed. Immediately after he heard his dad defend his imaginary penis, he started vomiting, which I think was excessive. Whatever works for him, I guess.   
Maybe one day we'll be able to laugh about this. Maybe one day I'll stop getting dead birds stuffed in my things. Maybe one day Apollo will look good in Romeo-pants. I don't know, we're demigods. Life's full of surprises.

 

Prompt sent to me by @Michiakalasbella on Wattpad. I hope this turned out the way you wanted it!


	55. Party

Nico's Point of View

"I don't want to go."  
Hazel sighed. "Just stay for an hour."  
"No." Hazel was trying to make me go to a party her friend was throwing. According to her, I️ needed to 'socialize.' Ugh.   
"Come on. The host is a great guy." She looked at me teasingly. "And he's gay. Maybe you know him."  
"Yeah, Hazel, because every gay person knows each other. I️ met him two weeks ago at the YES HOMO™ convention."  
"That's not what I️ meant and you know it. He goes to school with us. You guys have science and history together."  
"Have you been stalking him?"  
She glared at me. "Stop trying to change the subject. You are going to that party and that is final!"  
"No I'm not. And you can't force me."

A few minutes later I️ was sitting in the back of Frank's, (Hazel's boyfriend) car. Frank was talking excitedly about the party. He heard there would be karaoke. I've never understood why people would purposely sing, and consequently, make fools of themselves. But to each their own, I️ guess. 

After what felt like hours being tortured in the backseat of Frank's car, we arrived. Finally. We walked in the door to the brightest room I️ had ever seen. There were strobe lights flashing and music loudly pumping through large speakers. People were all over the place singing and dancing. There was a guy who wasn't wearing any pants. What was his problem? Maybe there was alcohol and he was drunk. 

Hazel left me after about 10 seconds. I️ knew this would happen, that was why I️ didn't want to come. But here I️ was, in a loud, flashy room, in a loud, flashy house. I️ tried to maneuver my way through the crowds to get some punch, but people kept blocking me and trying to dance with me. I️ eventually gave up and tried to find somewhere quiet. There were two stories to the house, but I️ couldn't find the stairs. So I️ wandered into a hallway and into a room with a closed door. At that point, I didn't care if someone wanted to keep me out. It was a nice room, less flashy, and while I️ could still hear the hellish chaos, it was much quieter. 

I️ looked around the room. The walls were a light blue color. Up against the left wall was a twin bed with pastel yellow sheets and some throw pillows with inspirational quotes on them. Next to the bed was a short bookshelf. On the other side of the room, there was a desk with a lamp on it, and a bulletin board filled with pictures of a boy and his friends. I️ saw Hazel in one of them. She was licking an ice cream cone with a few of her friends. So this was the guy she was talking about. She was right about him being attractive.   
"Excuse me? Do you need something?"   
The boy was standing behind me. "I️ keep my door closed for a reason you know."  
Boy, was he cute. "Umm... Sorry, I was really overwhelmed and I just kinda stumbled into here. It's stupid, I'm so sorry, I'll leave. I️ didn't mean to invade your privacy, my sister dragged me here. I️ don't even like parties. Again sorry, I'll leave now."   
He put his hand out to stop me as I️ was leaving. "I️ think you'll stay. You can leave if you want, but it's much better in here." He sat down on the ground and gestured for me to sit beside him. Once I️ did, he leaned forward toward me. "So, my name is Will. I'm 16 years old and I️ enjoy photography. I'm studying to become a doctor. Now tell me about yourself."   
"Um...I'm Nico Di Angelo. I'm 15."  
He peered at me. "That's not a lot to work off of." He paused. "What's your favorite band?"  
"The Ramones. Yours?"  
"I'll tell you next Saturday. 3:00 pm, are you free?"  
I️ nod. He grinned at me. "Great! It's a date. I️ know where your sister Hazel lives, so I'll pick you up." For once, I️ was glad I️ went to a party.


	56. Peacock

NPOV  
"I don't know where I'm   
going and in life isn't   
that what matters? Me?  
—Apollo"   
"Will, what are you doing? What are you wearing?" He was wearing a blue thong that had a bird neck and head sticking out of the front.   
"It a pea-cock. Get it? Becau-"   
"I get it. And I wish I didn't. Why are you quoting your dad?"  
"He got for me and I felt bad about taking it and not honoring him."  
"Why did you have to accept it?" He looked at me with a shocked expression. "Why wouldn't I?"  
"So many reasons. One, it's disturbing. Two, you look ridiculous. Three, Hazel's coming over later. Do you want her to see you in that?"   
He shrugged, "It's deeply erotic."   
What the Hades? "No, Will. It's not. And even if it was, the question still stands. Do you want Hazel to see your ass?" He shakes his head solemnly "No, I guess not. I'll change."

He came back dressed more appropriately, just in time. Hazel was knocking on the door. I answered, "Hey! I'm glad you were able to come!" She hugged me and I hugged back. I'm really glad Will changed. After all, she was coming over so we could tell her the big news. We got engaged! Yep. I was engaged to a doctor in a thong. I didn't think my life would turn out this way, but I couldn't be happier that it did.


	57. Pipeyna

Pipeyna, not Solangelo. 

Nico's POV  
"Because lesbians don't wait seventy-two hours to text back so to seem unavailable." Reyna says. I nod and clap politely before pointing out, "I have one piece of criticism. What if her dad doesn't ask why you're moving quickly? I mean, he is a celebrity. He made Piper the first few weeks into meeting Aphrodite."   
Reyna nods. "Yeah. Maybe. But let's practice a few more times just in case." I sigh.  
Reyna's almost always so practical. But around Piper, she just kinda melts into a puddle of confusion. I don't know how Piper does it. Now Reyna's going to meet her girlfriend's dad. Tristan McLean. When I met Apollo, it wasn't nearly so dramatic. He was all 'oh my me you're ten you can't drive this school bus.' But that was a long time ago. I no longer wanted to drive the sun bus. 

"Reyna, I know you're nervous, but it's going to go fine." I say, straightening her tie. For once, she was not wearing a cape. I think that while she can pull it off, no one else could. Frank is also a praetor, so he's also supposed to wear a cape, but he looks like Clark Kent. I mean,  Clark Kent's hot, but Frank doesn't really pull it off. Jason's the Superman, Frank is the, I don't know? Jayna the Wonder twin? Squirrel Girl? Some shapeshifting guy. 

As Reyna was telling me how meeting Piper's dad had gone, my only thought was about how extra they were. When I took Will to meet Hades, it was so simple. Well, no. It wasn't simple, but I could barely believe that Piper's dad was more extra than a god. 

Most gods don't meet their kids' datemates. They had so many kids, and couldn't possibly meet all of them. At least, that's what they say. I know that they just don't care. Apollo wouldn't have cared had we not met before. Hades cares, but he only has two (living) kids, and I'm one of them, so it's easier for him I think. 

I guess it wasn't that dramatic, but, well, I'll let Reyna tell you.

Reyna's POV  
I arrived at Piper's house, extremely nervous about meeting her father. I'd met Lady Aphrodite before, when she told me I wouldn't find love where I hoped. And it was true, at the time I liked Jason, but now I've got an amazing girlfriend. I'm good. So I hopped out of the car, waving goodbye to Nico and Jules Albert. 

I walked to the door and knocked firmly two times. If one wanted to hear inane pounding, they would buy some drums. Mr. McLean opened the door. "Hello, you must be Reyna!"  
Okay, I thought, you've flown across the world in a day. You've killed Orin with your own hands. You've led Rome to victory. You can meet Piper's dad.   
"Hi, Mr. McLean." I said. He smiled at me, teeth uncomfortably white. I entered the house and nodded at Piper. I'm not good at showing emotion, so that's the most I do in public. Piper, on the other hand, had other plans. She hugged me as I stood stiff and straight. 

"So, Reyna," Mr. McLean asked, not having touched his meal. "What do you do in your free time?" I swallowed my chicken.   
"Um.... I have two dogs, Argentum and Aurum, and I love them. I like politics." I couldn't say anything more about it. I was praetor of New Rome, but this man knew nothing about Piper's other life. So I just sat there, fake smiling and eating. Piper eventually started back the conversation. I love that girl, but sometimes she is hard to be around. I would much rather eat in uncomfortable silence than uncomfortable conversation. But I suppose that wasn't my choice to make, seeing as Piper made it for me.   
"Dad, Reyna likes hot chocolate just like you." He nodded. "I do like hot chocolate." A few more moments of blissful silence. I savored it while I could. Then, shiver, more chatter.

"Have a nice night, Mr. McLean. Piper." I waved goodbye and sat next to Nico. He took my hand and we started talking about how it went. I didn't reveal Piper's secret life, I didn't stab anyone, and I didn't run out. I'm counting this one as a success.


	58. Possum

"I turn into a goose, and you're a bit confused, but the the joke is on you because I was a duck all along. You, a fool, could not tell, for I was wearing a hat that said 'GOOSE' This was your downfall. As you were befuddled with my illusion, I attacked and stole your iced beverage. However, this was also my downfall. I was allergic to ice. So I, a simple duck, died a simple death. Death by ice."   
"Okay. I have one question. What the actual Hades?"  
Frank and Will were chatting while Hazel and I did other things. What we were doing isn't really important, (cough...mythomagic...cough) but what frank said really rattled me.  
"How did you even think of that?" I asked him.  
"Hazel and I were arguing about whether or not possums exist. I was like, 'of course they exist!' And Hazel was all, 'well then why am I still alive?' And I, forgetting this is a sensitive subject, pointed out that she had actually died before. So she ate all my pop tarts."  
Will sighed and nodded, "Been there, done that. Once I ate Nico's pop tarts and he wrote me a break up note. It said I had broken his heart and betrayed his trust. I still have that note."   
I stared at him blankly. He had kept the note? That would be sweet, but it was a freaking break up note. "Why would you keep that?"  
Hazel cleared her throat. "So anyway, he decided to prove it. He became a possum and ran around our house, seemingly unable to change back. He crashed into the medicine cabinet and drank a ton of cough syrup. When he finally was human again, he was drunk on cough syrup. And he said that."  
Frank looked thoroughly embarrassed. "I was not myself that night."  
"Obviously not," Will laughed. "You were a possum."


	59. Privacy

WPOV  
"Why are you closing the curtains?"   
"So your dad doesn't stalk us again. He's worse than Jasperv." We both call Jason 'Jasperv.' You'll understand later in the story. My dad drives the sun, so it makes sense my boyfriend would close the curtains. That way it won't be like the last time. Or the times before that.

The first time, it was Apollo. We were actually in my cabin, because all of my siblings were working in the infirmary that day. We had just started dating, a few days ago (we weren't even calling each other boyfriends yet) and weren't 'doing' anything. Just playing mythomagic. Jason didn't know that. He was hiding in an air vent (I don't know why, it's Jason. He's a perv.) "Oh. My. Gods. Kisssssss." He said just loudly enough for us to hear him. "Jason? Are you in Will's ceiling?" Nico asked.   
"......no......"  
"What the Hades, Jason? I can't believe this. We aren't even together. I'm going to start calling you Jasperv! Also, I'm going to tell Chiron that you aren't respecting basic boundaries." I stood up to say something, but something fell on top of me. It was Jason, big surprise. "Jasperv, get off me right now." We started meeting in Nico's cabin, where the vents don't open easily.

The second time, we were in Nico's cabin, and I kissed his cheek for the first time. I heard screaming from outside and opened the door. It was as my dad Apollo, who was watching through a window. We had forgotten to close the curtains. 

The time after that, we remembered to close the curtains, but Percy has no respect for privacy. You'd think he would, considering how many times someone's walked in on him and Annabeth. Nico and I were making out in his cabin because mine was full of my siblings when Percy walked in. "Oh. Wow. So blonds are your type. Why must Jason take everything I love?" I cleared my throat.   
"Why are you here?"  
"Leo needed to know how many people would be at the sing along."   
"Why would Leo need to know that?" Nico asked. Percy shrugged. "I don't know. But it looks like you too will be too busy to roast marshmallows." I threw a pillow at him. "Okay, okay, I'll go. Besides, it seems like you two will be too busy to attend." He started to leave, but as he left, he turned and asked, "Oh! Wait a second! Who tops?" That's how Percy got a broken nose. And why we bought locks for Nico's door.


	60. Professor Solace

"Skipping out on your work again, huh?" Will said, startling me pretty badly. "What's it to you?" I asked, turning to face him. The truth was, my depression was pretty bad. I just wanted to go home and cry. But Will didn't know that, I guess. He thought I was skipping out on class again.  
"That's no way to talk to your superior." Will smirked, leaning against the doorway.  
"You're barely my superior. You're, what, two years older than me? You're just so smart aren't you?" Will had graduated earlier, so when most people learned at college, he taught. 

And I, an idiot, signed up for his class. So I was supposed to call him 'Professor Solace' but I'm gonna go with no. Hard pass.

"Di Angelo? Excuse me?" Will interrupted my train of thought. I glared at him.  
"Like I said, it's none of your business. So back off."  
"A please would be nice."  
"A lot of things would be nice."  
"Very true. One of those things being you actually going to your classes. What's your excuse? And don't 'none of your business' me. You are going to tell me and you are going to tell me now." At this time I was trapped by a wall and Will's finger was on my chest. His lips were only a few inches from mine. Why was I thinking about his lips?  
I murmured, "Nothing. Please. Leave me alone." "Nothing, huh? You've missed almost a third of my classes this year, and I demand an answer. What's going on, Nico?" Apparently, Will could be scary when he wanted to be. I didn't think he had it in him. But there was an edge to his tone. He sounded concerned. But, then again, he couldn't be that concerned if he was threatening me. "What're you going to do if I don't tell you?" I asked. He looked taken aback. "What? I'm not going to do anything to you. I just want to know what's wrong. So I can help you."  
"Maybe I don't want your help." I retorted.  
"Well," Will said, "I'm going to help you anyway. I'm coming to your dorm tonight. I will bring pizza and this giant stuffed possum. It's so weird. It's all 'omg I'm a fuckin possum' but it's really an opossum and—'" Will stopped himself. "Sorry. I got ahead of myself. I mean, I am going to your home tonight with a giant opossum, but I'm supposed to be professional." Will smiled and I realized something. Something really bad. I was in love.


	61. Questions

"Nico, I've asked a lot of questions in the time we've been together.   
I asked you on a date. I remember it clearly, you said no, thinking I was mocking you. But I came to your cabin and picked you up, and we watched the fireworks together.   
I asked you if I could kiss you, and you blushed and nodded, like the adorable boyfriend you are.   
I asked you to move in with me, into the flat I was renting near my med school.   
And now, sweetheart, I ask you to marry me. I hope, that like the previous questions, you will say yes. Except the date one. You said no to that. But only because you thought I was mocking you, so that should be taken into account. Anyway, will you marry me please?" I looked Will, my beautiful boyfriend (soon to be fiancé) and said, tears in my eyes, "Of course! Yes!" And he kissed me, and everything was perfect.


	62. A Ravioli

"Why don't we just stay in and watch Netflix?"  
"Because I read that you still need to go on dates when you're living together." Will responded. Nico wasn't against going out, especially if Will was there. But tonight, he just really wanted to watch Psych and eat snacks.  
"Where did you read that?" Nico asked  
"Buzzfeed."  
"Of course. But have you ever considered that buzzfeed isn't always right? I took a godly parent quiz and it said my mom was Aphrodite." Will smiled at him charmingly. "Well then, I guess that's why I love you so much."   
Nico blushed. "You're such a dork!"  
"Yeah. But I'm your dork."

"I'll have a ravioli."  
"A ravioli. A single ravioli?"  
The waiter stared at the arguing couple.   
"I'll have multiple raviolis, and a cup of ice water." Will relented.  
"I'll have your spaghetti with white wine sauce, please. And a water for me, as well."  
"But," the waiter smiled. Not a kind smile, but a smile full of malice. Barely a hint of joy was detectable his face, but that hint was the joy of vengeance. "But I thought water wasn't your type!" He screamed, tearing off his cheap rubber mask, blood streaming down his disgusting excuse for a face.  
"Percy. Why are you here? What's on your face?"   
Percy frowned. "Dude, I put a lot of thought into this costume. Fake blood costs, like, 27 dollars. And yeah, the mask was cheap, but I still had to drive to the store, but the mask, find out where you guys were going, dress as a waiter, and wait for you guys."  
"Did you ever consider doing not that. Not spending 30 bucks on dye, not buying a creepy mask, and not following us on our date?" Will asked.  
"What would I do instead?"   
"Oh, I don't know, anything else?"   
Percy stuck his tongue out. "Percy," Nico said, "Please go home. You have a wife. Take Will's singular ravioli and go home." Percy sashayed over to the nearest exit, apparently not hearing Nico's shouts. "That's a fire exit!" Percy did not hear, or perhaps he simply did not care. Either way, he leaped out the door, landing in a bush. "Oh come on! Who puts a bush next to a doorway?" But you could barely hear his complaints over the fire alarm that was sounding.

"Yeah." Will said. "You're right. Let's stay home next time."


	63. Real?

No.  
No.  
No.  
Not again. I've already done this once, twice, thousands of times. But alas, what I have to give is never enough. I slip back.  
———————————————————————  
That was the third flashback I've had this week. It really makes me wonder how much of my life is real. I mean, I lost a lot of my life. I've lost a lot of memories. I can barely remember anything about my childhood. I remember what memories I stole from my father, and about six others, but yeah. It's pretty depressing.  
———————————————————————  
I crash my head against the headboard again. It must be real if I can feel pain. No. I felt pain when I was in Tartarus. And the things they showed me can't be real. I felt pain when I was trapped in that jar. Not alive, but not quite dead. Honestly, either would have been preferable. But I wasn't that lucky.   
I don't believe anything anymore. Is any of this actually happening?

"I never loved you. That's why I left." She said to me.   
"Bianca, no. You left because you thought I was safe here. I don't blame you. And I don't blame Percy anymore, and I don't even blame myself."  
She snarled at me, teeth bared like a rabid wolf. "You should." Then she vanished. 

That wasn't real. But it felt like it was. It was one of the many terrible things I saw. If that wasn't real, there was no way this is. I crash my head against the headboard again.  
———————————————————————  
Oh gods. What if Will's not real? What if he's a figment of my imagination that I subconsciously created to deal with the fact that I am worthless and unlovable? No. I can not go down that rabbit hole right now.  
———————————————————————  
What if I'm still wandering through Tartarus, disassociating so badly that I think I'm here? What if I'm still in that jar, half alive? What if I'm still in the Lotus Casino, and am so desperate to leave that I'm dreaming of escape?   
———————————————————————


	64. Royalty

As I look upon the kingdom, I think of many things. I see the grass, green, the rocks, grey. I think about the blue oceans and the golden sunlight. Yet none of these wonders are as beautiful as my love. 

I am King William. I gaze down the tower to my love. He's standing there, brooding as he always is. When I look into his eyes, all around me ceases to exist. He's..... magnificent.

"Will, come on. Get down from there. Burger King's about to close. Plus, you're way too old to be up there."   
"Untrue!" I say, "It says 2 years or older. There's no age limit. I have every right to be up here."  
Nico sighs. "They're about to close. Then you'll be stuck here all night with only cheeseburgers to keep you company. Come on, we gotta go." 

So I sadly glide to the edge of the tower and let myself fall into the field below me. My love catches me right before I hit the ground.   
"Good gods. You're so heavy."  
"The price of being royalty."  
"Will, having a paper crown does not make you royalty."  
"You're just jealous. I'm the leader of a great nation."  
"Let's go home, King William."

AN///It's short but I thought it was cute asjklv


	65. Safe

"Dad, please, don't do this." Nico pleaded as his father drew back his fist. "I can't control that I'm gay, and I can't change that about myself. Please don't be mad. Plea—" 

Nico wishes he could say that he died quickly, but that would be a lie. After his dad was done with him, he laid on the floor for hours, slowly bleeding out. After a while, he slipped into unconsciousness, then into death. 

"Nico," A kind voice spoke, "Nico." A hand touched Nico's shoulder.  
"Don't touch me," Nico sobbed, flinching away from the angel's touch. The angel took his hand away, not wanting to upset Nico. Nico's eyes were wild with fear. His breathing was quick and shallow. His body trembled and tears fell from his face.  
"Don't worry," The angel said, "I will never hurt you. My name is Will. You're safe now."

Will took Nico's hand. To his surprise, Nico didn't recoil. He even relaxed a little.   
"I- I-" Nico started.  
"It's okay," Will interrupted. "Can I hug you?" Nico nodded. Will pulled Nico into a hug. For the first time in years, Nico felt safe.


	66. Schooled

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Solangelo High School AU in which Will is the hot, smart, surfer boy who's aspiring to be a doctor. Nico is the transgender emo kid who plans on being a coroner. He's not that attractive. He's the boy who people find creepy. The boy people make fun of behind his back. The boy with whom Will Solace is in love.

Nico walked to his locker, narrowly avoiding bumping into anyone. He put his stuff in his book bag to take home and rushed to leave before anyone noticed him.

No one noticed Nico, but Nico noticed someone. Will Solace, a hot, smart, surfer boy who aspired to be a doctor. He had the brain for it. It wasn't rare for Nico to notice Will. Everyone noticed Will, he was amazing. The spotlight shone on him whenever he entered the room. Nico wasn't jealous. He never liked people's eyes on him. He preferred working behind the scenes, every now and then changing the script ever so slightly, in a way no one would notice for a long time. Once, he slowly trained his classmates to cry at the sound of fingers snapping. His father was not pleased to find his son was a mini Pavlov. 

Nico rushed out the door. He ran home, not wanting to see any of his classmates. He ran into his house and into his room. Nico exhaled loudly. Okay, he thought, I'm safe here. 

He did his homework. He ate a snack. He dealt with the soul-crushing weight of being a gay trans boy in Texas. He chatted with his sister. He folded some laundry. An average day for Nico Di Angelo.

 

Will ran out of school, hoping to catch the short dark haired boy. The boy who tended to hide in the shadows, but who Will never failed to notice. 

He didn't catch up to him. He had no idea where the smaller boy lived. He always left from school before Will did. Will was in a few clubs and had a lot of friends, even if none of them knew the real him. The dark haired boy always sprinted away from school as fast as he could, as if he was being chased. Maybe he was. He was a short boy with dorky glasses and feminine features. The perfect target for bullying. But Will had never seen anything happen to him. 

Will entered his home. He said hello to his siblings and went up to his room to do his homework. Just as he laid on his bed to start reading, he got a call from his friend Jason.  
"Hey, Jason." He answered. "What's up?"  
"Piper just posted that she's dating Reyna." "Oh, wow." Will responded, not really surprised. Jason and Piper had broken up a few months ago, and Jason and Reyna long before that.   
"Yeah! She posted a picture on her Instagram of her and Reyna captioned 'Reyna is the best girl friend.' I'm so upset." Jason said. Will paused before speaking hesitantly, "You know I'm gay, right?" "What? No, I didn't know that. I'm not hating on them because of gay."  
"Then why?"  
"Because I can't believe Piper's moved on so quickly!" Will nodded in response before realizing he was on the phone and therefore Jason could not see him. "Oh. Okay. I don't know how to help you with that."  
"Yeah, man. I'm fine with you being gay. Just don't hit on me, lol."   
"Don't worry, Jason. I'm only attracted to good looking guys."  
"Oh, goo—Hey! Rude!"   
"But true." Will said as he hung up, Still bewildered that Jason said 'lol.'

 

Nico could barely believe it. No, scratch that. He believed it wholeheartedly. His alarm wasn't set. He had woken up the time he usually left and now had to rush. He already left his house at the latest time possible to not be late. He rushed out without grabbing any breakfast. He did, however, grab a thing of coffee. It helped with his depression. He was on medication, but without coffee his depression really got to him. 

He somehow got to school on time. After his morning classes, he slunk back to his locker. He hoped no one noticed him. Unfortunately, someone did notice him. Octavian. Octavian was a jerk, to put it kindly. He was the kid who burned ants for fun. Who killed frogs to kill time. Who loved picking on everyone who showed even the slightest vulnerability. Nico already had a problem with vulnerability. He used to lived with his father, stepmother, and sister. The experience left him traumatized. Marie, his stepmom, was emotionally abusive. Hades, his dad, fell for her a few years ago. She found out what he wanted and pretended to be that woman for a while. She would find your insecurities and slash them open even wider. She was the only mother Nico ever knew, he trusted her. But then she changed. She became angry and vindictive. No matter what you said or did, she would twist your words and make you seem like the villain. He didn't live with her anymore, Hades had once again remarried, but trauma stuck long after the danger was gone. 

Octavian walked up to Nico. "Hey, girlie." He said. "Hey, Octavian. I'm a boy." Nico responded, having given up on trying to further prove his masculinity. He used to protest, but now, he was too tired, and it was only October. "What're you doing tomorrow? Going on a date with your boyfriend?"   
Nico sneered. "Octavian, that doesn't offend me. Try harder." Nico started walking away. "Where do you think you're going?" Octavian asked, blocking Nico's way. "Lunch. It's lunch time."  
"Is it, now? What's for lunch? Your gay butt?"  
"Maybe if I valued your opinion, I'd be offended by that, but right now it just sounds weird. Seriously, why? It seems li-" Nico didn't get to finish his sentence. Octavian punched him and walked away. Nico used to tell teachers about the abuse, but gave up after hearing 'try being not gay' and 'stop pretending to be a boy' one too many times. It was less hurtful to be punched or kicked every few days than to be hurt physically, tell someone, and have them make fun of you, too.

Nico didn't eat lunch, even though he was hungry from not eating that morning. He didn't want to go into the cafe, knowing it would mean letting the bullies see him again, reminding them that he existed. Instead, he walked to the library. The librarians knew him well. He went there everyday to help put up books and dust shelves. They didn't mind his gayness, transness, his creepy clothes, or his hair that could never get the I-just-got-out-of-bed-and-I-still-look-good look. They just liked having help. 

"And, Miss Di Angelo, do you know the answer."  
"I'm a boy, Mr.Smith."  
"I don't care about what you want to be. I want to know the answer to the problem."  
"34,821.07." Nico answered. He was good at math. He figured that maybe if he was super respectful (read: treated the teachers like gods) and was a total pushover, they would respect (read: treat him like a human) him and use his actual name and pronouns. It hadn't been working. 

He saw Will again as he began his run home. He stopped for a moment to gaze at Will's gorgeous hair when Will turned around and saw Nico. He walked over to him. "Hey, you're Nico, right?" Nico panicked "Yes. I am Nico. I'm dead inside." Then he ran.

'Good going.' Nico thought to himself, tears in his eyes as he ran home. 'You blew it.'

Will tried to follow him. Will was pretty fast, he was sure he could find the boy. He found out earlier that day that the boy's name was Nico. He'd been looking for about a week, but Nico wasn't easy to find. He wasn't in any clubs, didn't sign any yearbooks, wasn't in any friend groups. Everyone knew of him, they had heard his name and seen him around before, but no one was close with him. A girl named Lacy said she had tried to get to know him because he seemed so sad, but he pushed her away. She decided he wasn't worth the effort. 

Will eventually found Nico when he was talking to a librarian. "Oh, yes." Said Mrs. White, the older librarian. "You're describing Nico. He's a very sweet young man. He wants to be a coroner one day. The other children don't like him very much, but we do, so he spends his lunch in here."   
"Oh....okay." Mrs. White said this so casually, as if everyone wanted to be a friendless, lunchless coroner loved only by librarians.   
Will supposed that Nico probably wanted friends, but had a trust issue that stemmed from past trauma. He wondered what Nico had been through. He wondered if he could help. Although was going to be a physical doctor, he learned about psychology just in case. He figured it was important to understand people if you wanted to treat them. 

 

Kayla thought Will was being ridiculous. Will thought he wished Kayla would leave him alone for a few minutes, please. Kayla said no. Will locked his door and went onto his phone. He was talking with Jason again, this time on text.  
Will: I found the name of the guy I like.  
Jason: Whoa, dude. You didn't know his name?  
Will: He's not exactly easy to find.   
Jason: So what's his name?  
Will: Nico  
Jason: Nico Di Angelo????????  
Will: Yeah. Do you know him?  
Jason: Um, duh. I'm like, his only friend. Or, I was.  
Will: What does that mean?  
Jason: He stopped talking to me about a year ago, after Mr. Eros outed him.  
Will: Eros is a dick.  
Jason: Don't say stuff like that. He might be listening.  
Will: How?  
Jason: He has eyes and ears everywhere.   
Will: You do you, Grace. You do you.

Will's mom knocked on his door.   
"Yes?" Shouted Will.  
"William, open your door!" Will's mother yelled. "Why's your door locked?"   
"Kayla was bothering me." Will replied as he opened his door.  
"Will, we don't lock doors in this house. Locked doors are locked hearts."  
"Right." Will thought this was a nonsense concept. I mean, seriously? Locked hearts? But try to tell his mom that.  
"Will, you know how tomorrow we're going to your brother's saxophone performance?"  
"Yeah." Will lied. He did not remember.  
"It's been canceled. Sorry about that."  
"Oh no!" Will said, feigning disappointment. "Poor Austin. He must be so sad."   
"Yes. Austin is very upset." Will's mom said. 

Will doubted that. His brother Austin would most likely not be too beaten up about it. He didn't like preforming in front of crowds. Not that it was huge crowd. It was in Austin's school's auditorium. All the people in the band would go on stage and play a song. The forty or so audience members would clap politely, then go home and actually do something with their lives. Usually Will's family went to dinner afterwards and pretended that the performance was way nicer than it was. Will usually enjoyed those nights, so it surprised him that he forgot this year. I mean, to be fair, he did have a lot on his mind.

"I'm sure it wasn't as bad as you described." Hazel tried to comfort Nico.  
"No, Hazel. That's exactly what happened. He talked to me, I panicked, told him I was dead inside, and ran."  
"Yeah, that's pretty bad. But hey, you're a strong, independent boy who don't need no man!" Nico sighed, "This is what I get for making you a tumblr."  
"You still haven't given me your URL."  
"And I never will. It's my safe place."  
"It's an online page anyone can see."  
"No one knows it's me, though. None of my followers know me in real life."  
"I won't judge you." Hazel said.  
"I know, and thank you for that, but I'm not giving you my name."  
"Fine. But you know mine, right? At least follow me?"   
"No." Nico knew why Hazel wanted him to follow her. So she could go into her followers and figure which one was her brother. Nico wasn't going to let that happen.

Will needed to figure out a way to get to know Nico. Was "I'm dead inside" a panic response? Why would Nico panic when Will talked to him? Maybe because Nico didn't have friends, and the prospect of having was was intimidating. Will kind of understood. He was nervous when he talked to Nico. But Will doubted Nico liked him. They hadn't ever talked, and Nico didn't really let people into his social circle. Maybe I could change that.

Will took a while to come up with a plan. He eventually decided to wait at Nico's locker. When Nico came by, Will would talk to him, and Nico couldn't run because he had to get his stuff. It was the perfect plan!

It was supposed to be the perfect plan, but Will messed it up. He went to the wrong locker, one close to Nico's, but in a corner Nico couldn't see. Nico walked to his locker, entering his combination and putting his things inside. Will was about to walk over, slightly miffed that he got the wrong locker, when he saw someone walking over to Nico. He didn't want to admit he was upset that Nico already had a friend. He should've been happy for him. But Will wanted to be the one to help him. Shut up, he thought to himself, stop thinking so selfishly. The blond haired boy walked over to Nico. Will knew this guy. He was pretty sure his name was Octavian. He had bullied Will when he was younger, but people change. Maybe he was nice now.

He was not. Octavian stood uncomfortably close to Nico. It would've been a nose-to-nose kind of thing, but Nico was short. More like nose-to-forehead. Maybe they were good friends, and that's how Octavian showed affection. Octavian said something (Will couldn't hear) and Nico stepped forward. He looked very intimidating for a 5'0" guy with cuts and scratches on his arms. Nico responded with a remark that must've been pretty snarky, or maybe Octavian was even worse than Will had thought, because Octavian pushed him. He knocked him onto the ground and kicked him. Will should've done something, but he was frozen in shock. He knew Nico wasn't popular, and most people disliked him, but he didn't think anyone did this. He really needed to lower his expectations for people. Most people were just jerks. Will liked to believe that there was good in everyone. Sometimes, times like these, it was extremely difficult. 

When Will was finally able to move, Octavian was gone. Will walked to Nico and held his hand out to help him up. Nico did not accept the hand. "What do you want, Solace?" He asked angrily. "I want to help."  
"Why would you want to help me? Aren't you supposed to be hanging out with your cool friends?"  
"I, er, saw what just happened, and you seem like a nice person, so I want to help. I mean, I'd help anyone getting beaten up, but you still seem nice."   
Nico laughed coldly. "Nice? Really? It's a fun thought, but there's a reason I don't have any friends."  
"Because you're creepy?" Dammit, Will. Why would you say that?  
"Yeah. That's me. Creepy Nico, the transgender who loves helping librarians and killing small animals." Nico started walking away, but turned back for a second. "I don't kill small animals, by the way. That's a stupid rumor."  
Will ran to catch up. Nico looked puzzled. "What're you doing?"  
"Um, I'm walking home with you."  
"No you aren't."  
"Yes, I am. I'm going to walk you home and we are going to chat and it will be casual and enjoyable."  
"I said no."  
"And I ignored you."  
Nico scowled at him. "Fine."

"So, Nico, what do you like to do for fun?" Will asked Nico.   
"Fun?"  
"Yeah. Do you not know what fun is?"  
"No, Solace. I know what fun is. Don't break into a musical number. I thought you might've said 'gum' and that would be weird."  
"Weirder that breaking into song?"  
"I didn't say that."  
"Did you think it?"   
"No."  
Then they walked in silence for a while. Well, if you count Will humming silent, which Nico did not. He was not having a good day. First he was out of coffee, so his depression was much worse. He got a coffee from the school cafeteria, but like all cafeteria coffee, it was disgusting. But it made him feel less emotionally dead. So that was a plus. He was misgendered a lot, and deadnamed once. He tried erasing his deadname, but it was difficult when you lived in the same transphobic town in which you grew up. Sometimes he would see an old "friend" who would purposefully call him that. 

"So, you're dead inside?" Will asked him. Nico mentally scolded himself, wishing his house was closer. How was he supposed to answer that?  
"I guess? How do you expect me to respond to that?" Nico asked.  
"Well, that was what you told me yesterday. And I thought it might be the beginning to a joke or something."  
"Only if I'm the joke. No, I have depression and I panicked. I don't like talking to people. I creep them out."  
"You don't seem to creep out some people." He didn't say Octavian's name, but Nico knew he was the person.   
"I do creep out Octavian. He feels like if he beats me up, I'll be scared of him and he'll be stronger than me. But he's wrong. I'm not scared of him. I've dealt with worse." Nico bit his tongue, regretted adding the last bit. He felt like it sounded like a brag. Like, hey, bro! I've survived more trauma than you! Fist bump! Also, now Will would ask him what the trauma was, and Nico didn't want to talk about it. He made that pretty clear.  
"Wanna talk about it?"  
"No."

"Do you want to come in?" Nico asked him a few days later, expecting Will to act repulsed and leave him alone. That's usually what happened. Someone tried to befriend Nico, he would push them away, then on the rare occasion they persisted, he would creep them out. But for some reason, Will wasn't creeped out.   
"I'd love to! Let me just tell my dad why I'm late home."

"I like your room. Could you help me decorate mine sometime?" Will asked as he sat on Nico's bed. Nico didn't think Will would like his room. Then again, he didn't think Will would like him. His room had light grey walls and black curtains. The blankets on his bed were shades of blue. There were books and paintings everywhere.   
"Uh, really? Are you making fun of me?" Nico asked.  
"No? I really like your room and I've been wanting to change mine up for a bit." Nico smiled. "Oh. Okay. Yeah, I'd love to."  
"Also, can I stay for a bit? We can do our homework together." Will asked.  
"Are you sure? I mean, yeah, you can, but why?" Nico asked.  
"I like your home. And I like being with you."   
Nico turned his head so Will couldn't see his blush.

Will could hardly believe it. His plan had worked, more or less. I mean, yeah, he was kinda creepy and followed Nico home when he didn't want him to, and Will takes full blame for that. But in less than a week he invited him into his house! And they went to his room! And apparently he not only loves reading, but he loves painting! He's the perfect boyfriend. No, Will thought, I'm not going to ruin our just started friendship because he's cute. I'm better than that.   
Jason did that, and now he wasn't friends with Piper. It could be awkward because he was still friends with Reyna and Piper's usually with her. But Will wasn't that guy. Nico needed someone to be his friend, Will was that friend. He wasn't going to let his own stupid teenage feelings ruin everything. 

 

Hazel walked into Nico's room without knocking, interrupting his train of thought.   
"Sooooooooo?" Hazel asked. "Give me the details!"  
"What details?" Nico acted confused.  
"Of the guy leaving your room! You can't just bring a hot guy into this house and expect me to not notice! Is he Will? Oh my God I bet it's Will!"   
"It's Will."   
"Yay! And is there a reason he was in your bedroom? Hmmmm?" Hazel raised her eyebrows, bouncing on her heels.   
"Yeah, actually." Nico responded, "He followed me home and we did homework."  
"Is that all? Did you kiss?"   
"Yes, Hazel. I kissed the straight guy who followed me home. I ruined the first friendship I've had in years by making out with him."  
"No need for sarcasm." Hazel huffed.  
"I personally think there's a great need for it."   
"You're a fool!"  
Nico laughed, "Really, Hazel? A fool? You've got to do better than that if you want to even slightly dent my pride."  
"Humph. Mom wants me to get you. It's dinner time and Dad wants to know about the cute guy leaving our house."  
"Is that what he said?"  
"Ehh.." Hazel moved her hand back and forth in a so-so motion. "Basically."

"So..... Who's the boy?" Persephone asked. First his dad married Maria, Nico's mom, then Marie, Hazel's mom, and then Persephone, his current wife. Hazel called her Mom. Nico still didn't trust her. He had trusted Marie, and she shattered him. He didn't trust any adult who chose to live in Texas. No one was forcing them. Why would anyone chose to live here?

"A friend from school." Nico responded curtly. He didn't want to start a conversation about him. He would accidentally tell them how Will first talked to him when he was getting beaten up, revealing the fact that he was being beaten up. Plus, Nico thought, he probably thinks I'm annoying.   
"You have a friend?" Hades asked. It wasn't said in a cruel way, but as a sincere question. Still, it stung. You know your social life's bad when your dad takes pity on you. Especially when your dad has approximately 3 friends.   
"Yeah." Nico responded. "His name is Will. He wants me to help him redecorate his room. So that's cool."  
"Yes. That is cool." Hades said. You could tell by his face that he thought saying the word 'cool' somehow made him cool. "I'm glad you have a friend your age."  
"Yep."  
"Is he nice?"  
"Yep."  
"Do you like him?"  
"Yep."  
"Do you like like him."  
"First of all, no. Secondly, like like? That's so 2011."

Nico lay awake at 2 am, still processing the fact that Will wanted to be his friend. It was a strange concept for him. The last person he had connected with was named Jason. Jason was cool, Nico guessed. He had a stereotypical white guy in the suburbs vibe. He got a car the day he turned 16, he lived in a house with one rebellious sister and two parents of different genders. His dad cheated on Jason's mom often, but she'd never leave him. Jason's dad was a pilot, and he used this as an excuse. "Sorry, babe, but you should be happy. I'm on the lower side compared to other pilots. I've only cheated on you, like, forty times. That's on the lower end of the spectrum."  
Yeah, it was pretty dysfunctional, but Nico figured he wasn't in a place to judge based on his past. 

One of his teachers said he was trans because his stepmother was abusive and he didn't want to be like her. Apparently, Nico 'wanted to be a boy' so he could be less like her.  
"I don't really care why I'm a boy. But I appreciate your support!" Nico had responded . "No problem! I understand. My daughter used to think she was a lesbian, too, but then she prayed and now she's normal!"   
It took a lot of effort to not scream.

 

"Ugh. Why did I agree to this? This is boring." Nico complained as he stared at the same two paint swatches.  
"Because you love interior design."  
"Shut up." Nico whined.  
"Make me." Said Will, seemingly unaware of how much that made Nico want to kiss him. Nico shook the thought out of his head. He did not like Will.   
"These all look exactly the same."  
"No!" Will protested. "This one is called 'daisy cream' and this one is called 'pale sunflower.' So they're different."  
"Will. Seriously. I think they're the exact same color. They probably just changed the name of the paint and didn't throw out the old cards."  
"Do they change color names?"  
"Obviously, based on what happened."  
"Fine." Will said, grabbing both swatches just in case. They walked to the man at the counter. "What's the difference between these two colors?" Nico asked him. The man grunted. "No difference. Just a different name."  
"Thank you. We'll take one gallon of it, please."  
"Which color?"  
"You just said they were the same color." Will responded. The man just shrugged. 

 

"So, Will, this set of throw pillows brings out the color of your curtains, but these," Nico says, gesturing to another set of pillows, "Tie the rest of the room together."  
"Wow." Will said. "I thought you said this was boring."  
"I said that about paint colors. You spent an hour picking between the same color."  
"And now you're going to spend an hour on pillows."  
"I'm just saying. This is far more interesting. Seriously, Solace. They were the same f-ing color."  
"You're never going to let me live this down, are you?"  
"No. Now pick a set of pillows. I'm leaning toward the first ones."

"What kind of music do you like?" Nico asked.  
"All music." Will replied dramatically, waving his hand in the air for some reason.   
"Okay. I'm going to order this poster for 'Clown Regge Pop; kidz edition'." Nico threatened.   
"Ugh. You're no fun. I like all music but that. Who wrote those songs?"  
"I did." Nico said. Will was pretty sure he was joking, but he asked just to make sure. "Really?"  
"Yeah, Will. I dropped out of school, moved to Arkansas, got dreadlocks, making me one of those white guys with dreadlocks, which is like, woah, cultural appropriation, and then I got a got a face tattoo."  
Will was understandably confused. "What?"  
"That's what it says in the about the artist section." Nico responded.  
"Oh."  
"I'm ordering you this poster."  
"No!" Will cried dramatically as he tried to take the computer from Nico. Nico tried to hold it out of his reach, but being exactly five feet tall did not make it easy. Needless to say, Will got the computer back easily.

 

It took a few weeks for Will's room to be done. But when it was, Nico and Will were very good friends. They did a lot together. Octavian hadn't harassed or hurt Nico as much and he had a friend. He knew it was sad for those to be his only requirements for happiness, as most people had friends and didn't get beaten up regularly, but he didn't care. He was happy.

"He's cute." Will said. Nico figured Will was just saying that. Although he had to admit, the actor was cute.   
"Yeah."  
"I mean," Will continued, "He could guard my galaxy any day." Nico started laughing so hard he almost fell of Will's bed.  
"That makes you sound so gay!" Nico half-said, half-snorted.  
"Good." Will stated.  
"Wait." Nico said, no longer giggling hysterically, "You're gay?"  
"Yep." Will said, leaning over to Nico. "And you know what I think we should do?" Nico blushed. Will continued, "We should finish this movie."

"Hazel, I'm not sure how much longer I can do it." Nico said from his sister's bed. Hazel looked at him from her desk across the room. "Do what? Are you feeling suicidal? Becau-" "No," Nico interrupted, "My depression meds are fine. It's Will." "What?!" Hazel stood abruptly.   
"What did he do? I will find him and I will gouge out his eyes!" Hazel screamed with fury. Nico was taken aback.   
"Um, no, please don't do that."   
"Give me one reason I shouldn't!"  
"Um..... because he's a nice person who doesn't deserve your wrath?"  
"Oh yeah?" Hazel questioned. "If he's so 'nice'," She put the word in air quotes. "Then why is he making you sad? That's right. Where's your shiv?" Nico hadn't really thought of Hazel as scary before, but he was starting to reconsider his views. "Why would I have a shiv?" He asked.  
"Are you saying you don't?" Hazel responded.  
"I mean, I do, but it's kinda messed up that you expected my to."  
"Nico, where is the knife?"  
"Hazel, please. I'm not giving you a knife, because, quite frankly, you're terrifying when you're mad." Hazel nodded, seeming to take this as a compliment. "Plus," Nico continued, "Will didn't do anything wrong."  
"So... Why're you sad?"  
"Because I'm in love with him." Hazel's eyes grew wide before she shrieked loudly like a velociraptor. The door flew open and Hades burst into the room. His face was stricken with sheer panic. Hazel did not seem to care. She kept screaming. Hades looked at Nico, whose head was in his hands, and then to Hazel, who was still shrieking.

"Hi." Nico said timidly. "I'm Nico." He waved at Will's friends. His old acquaintance Jason was there, along with a few other people Nico had seen before, but had never spoken to. Will really wanted Nico to meet his friends, so they were meeting outside an ice cream shop.  
"Hey!" Smiled the boy Nico thought was named Leo. "How are you? Dead inside?" He winked at Will, who looked horrified.   
"I told you that in confidence!" He whispered loudly.  
"Oh, Will," Leo responded, "We don't have that kind of relationship."  
Nico sighed. Typical. He was socializing and he messed it up. Oh well. Everyone could sense the awkwardness in the air. They all just kinda stood there until Jason had had enough.   
"Nico!" He said far too loudly for the situation. "How've ya been? Partying hard or hardly partying?" Nico wasn't sure what Jason was talking about. Nico hadn't been invited to a party in years, and if he had been, he would have pretended to lose the invitation. He had no idea what Jason meant.   
"What?"   
Jason opened his mouth to respond but didn't get the chance. Piper and Reyna walked out out of the shop holding multiple ice cream cones.   
"Hey, Nico!" Reyna said.  
"You know me?" Nico asked, confused. Reyna raised an eyebrow.   
"You were on the same kids volleyball team as me."  
Leo started laughing. "Oh my God! You played volleyball? That's so...." He paused, realizing that this was Reyna, and no one insults Reyna and got away with it. Reyna and Nico glared at him.  
"Badass?" Reyna questioned.  
"Yes?"   
"Good." Nico said as he glared at Leo with a scowl to rival Brienne of Tarth. 

"Well!" Will said, rubbing his hands together. "I'm glad we got that out of the way. Now we have a conversation topic! Nico and Reyna used to play volleyball, the coolest sport, together. Let's talk about that." He sat down at the table next to Jason.   
"But," Piper asked, "Aren't volleyball teams separated by gender?"   
Hurt shown in Nico's eyes. Although Piper's question was sincere, Nico thought it was a hit at his masculinity.   
"Obviously not, beauty queen." Nico said harshly. He hated transphobes.  
Leo wolf whistled. "You see, Pipes? Everyone agrees that you're a beauty queen."  
"No," Nico clarified, "I was just being a bitch to this 'queen.'"  
"How dare you?" Reyna said. "No one insults my girlfriend and survives."  
"She's not gonna kill you! Babe, please don't kill him!" Piper shouted. Reyna expected Nico to stand up or back away. He did not. He raised his head higher and said with a voice full of snark, "When someone questions who I am, says that I'm a girl, I say to them whatever I please. I'm not threatened by you, Reyna." Nico shrugged. Reyna liked this kid.   
"You're trans?"  
"Wow." Nico said, applauding slowly, "Great observation."  
"Dammit Nico!" Will groaned. "This is why you don't have friends."   
To Reyna's surprise, Nico looked very upset, almost on the verge of tears. He and Will must've been closer than she'd thought.   
"I thought you were my friend?"   
"Oh my God," Will sighed exasperatedly, "That's not what I meant." 

Nico was pretty sure Will said something else, but he didn't stay to hear it. He stood up, grabbed his bag, and started running. He ran very quickly, stopping only when he entered his bedroom and slumped against a wall. He was really quick. He would tell people that he was fast because he had a lot of practice. He loved running from his problems. At least, that's what he would say if he had friends. But he didn't. Will had made that abundantly clear.

"Nico, I'm sure he didn't mean it that way."  
"Hazel, I appreciate your support, but you kinda had to be there. Ugh." Nico groaned from the floor.  
"Do you want to talk about it?" Hazel asked. Nico shook his head. "I'm good." He was not good. He didn't want to talk about it with Hazel or his stepmom or his dad. He only wanted to talk to Will. But he doubted Will would want to talk to him. After all, they weren't friends. Nico's suspicion had proven correct, he was a pet project. Will had seen him getting beaten up and 'befriended' him, only to show how he really felt a few months later. What did I expect? For Will to actually like me? 

 

"Nico!" Will shouted after Nico. Nico was fast, grabbing his bag and slinking into the shadows before Will could finish saying the other boy's name.  
"I didn't know he was trans." Piper said. "I feel really bad. I was genuinely wondering."  
"He insulted you, Piper." Reyna said.   
"Yeah," Piper said, "But he thought I was calling him a girl. So I forgive him. Will, what do you think?" Will didn't answer. He stared into the distance where Nico had fled.   
"I ruined everything." He said.   
"No, Will, I ruined it, I'm sure he-" Piper tried to console him.   
"No. Thanks, Pipes, but I did this. I ruined everything."

"Nico! Open up your door and stop feeling sorry for yourself!" Hazel shouted through the door. Nico wasn't sure why she didn't just open it, maybe she thought it was locked.  
"Please go away, Hazel." Nico said.  
"I will not! Now unlock this door!"   
Nico sighed. "It's not locked."

Hazel walked in and immediately started shouting. "Nico Di Angelo! You are better than this! You're a strong, independent boy who don't need no man!" This did not seem to help improve Nico's mood.  
"Hazel. He said I wasn't his friend. I was rude to his real friends. Then I ran away. He hates me now. I messed up everything."  
Hazel sat down next to him. "Nico, why would he pretend to be your friend. No offense, but you aren't cool enough to boost Will's social status. You don't show off how smart you are, so he didn't fake befriend you for that. So tell me again why he faked being your friend?"  
"I don't know, Hazel!" Nico cried. "It would have been so much easier for everyone if he'd just left me alone like I told him to! But no, he was a persistent jerk and he followed me home! He saw me getting beaten up, and I became his pet project. I'm supposed to be the creepy person here. I follow people home and do phycological experiments on them!"  
"Well," Hazel said, forever looking on the bright side, "Now you know why Dad was upset when you Pavlov-ed those other kids."  
"Gee, thanks, Hazel." Nico said sarcastically, "That helps."  
"What do you want me to say? I kinda think you should call him and apologize for being rude to his friends and running off."  
"I.... Fine."

Nico practiced what he was going to say for an hour. "Hey, Will. Sorry I suck! I should jump in front of a bus, I'm sorry I bothered you, bye."  
He sighed. He would need to sound better on the actual call, not talk about his suicidal tendencies. "Hi, Will. I killed a goat and sacrificed it to a long dead god. Now that I've killed, I have an unsatisfiable taste for goat blood. That's right. I sacrificed it to myself. I am a god. All hail Lord Nico."  What the hell? Even he knew how weird that sounded. What was wrong with him? Okay, he thought, I'm going to call now. No talking about depression, death, how much you hate yourself, or past trauma. You can do this.   
He hoped the call would go to voicemail. He didn't want to hear Solace's voice.

Kayla didn't understand. She was just upset Will wasn't listening to her. "Kayla, I need to go." He went up to his room and wrote an essay he had due tomorrow. People always said 'Will, don't do an entire essay in one night! You'll fail and you'll never be a doctor!' But Will had done this since third grade. He knew his method worked, provided he drank enough coffee. Nico drank a lot of coffee. Will felt bad that he hadn't texted Nico to apologize. What if Nico felt like everything was his fault? Nico was already a sad person, thinking he had caused this might make him even sadder. Will decided he would message him immediately.

Will reached for his phone and saw that he had a voicemail. Who even called anymore? Texting was so convenient. Calling was stupid. At least, that's what Will thought before he saw who left the message.   
"Hey, Will. It's Nico. I mean, you probably know that because caller ID and all that. But I was just calling to tell you I'm sorry. I'm sorry I was rude to your friends. I'm sorry I ran. I get that we're not friends, and I feel like an idiot for thinking we were." Nico paused to laugh awkwardly. "Okay, um, yeah, sorry, don't feel like you have to call me back. I mean, you probably wouldn't, but, like, um, just in case. Okay, thanks for everything, bye."

Will didn't call back. He thought it would be better to talk to Nico the next day, in person.

Talking to him in person didn't go as well as Will had planned. In fact, it probably went the exact opposite of why he had planned. Here's what was supposed to happen; Will would walk up to Nico, who's angry and sad, and tell him he was sorry. Nico would be doubtful and Will would assure him they were friends. That's not what happened. Nico and Will didn't have any classes together that day, so Will figured he would wait outside and walk home with Nico. School ended at 3:00. All clubs were over at 3:45-4:00. Nico left at 4:30 to make sure no one saw him. Will watched him glance through the hallway, shuffling to his locker. He watched as he entered his combination and took out some books. He watched as Nico stepped into the shadows and started leaving.   
"Where do you think you're going, Nico?" Will asked. Oops. That's probably not the best thing to say to your depressed friend.   
"I'm going home. What do you want from me, Solace. I already apologized." His voice was sad.   
"I'm sorry." Will said. "I shouldn't have said you weren't my friend. You're my best friend! You're the best person I know."  
"Sure I am." Nico scoffed as he started walking away. Will didn't follow.

Why was life so hard for Nico Di Angelo? Why couldn't he be normal? Why couldn't he accept a stupid apology? Why was he such an idiot? Why was he so creepy? Those were his thoughts as he locked his door.

"Octavian, I can't right now. Please go away." Nico said.   
"Oh, the girl's tired? What a surprise." Octavian pushed him onto the floor and kicked him a few times. Nico couldn't find it in himself to care.   
"Hey!" Nico heard someone yell. Her voice was familiar and pretty. "You back away from him right now!" Octavian stopped kicking and sneered toward the voice.   
"Oh yeah?" Octavian challenged. "Fight me, Reyna." Nico heard some arguing and was pretty sure some punches were thrown, but Octavian eventually backed off. Reyna approached Nico. "Nico. What are you doing?"  
"I'm lying on the floor, bleeding pretty badly. Thanks, Reyna. Sorry for bothering you. I'll leave. I didn't mean for you to interfere, sorry for the trouble." He tried to get up to leave but Reyna stepped in front of him.   
"No."   
"No? No what?" Nico asked.  
"You are not going to run off to your house. You are going to the hospital. Im not an expert, but you're hurt. And you are going to call your mom."  
"My mom's dead."  
"Okay. Well then, you are going to call your dad."  
"No." Nico said, standing as tall as he could as a five foot zero boy with a limp. Reyna crossed her arms and smiled at him.  
"You don't have the upper hand here. We're going to the hospital. If you don't call your dad, the ER person will."   
"No, I mean, please. I can't. I can't go to the hospital. Then everyone would know about Octavian. It'd just make things worse. Please, Reyna?" Damn. This kid could look pitiful. Then again, Reyna was pretty sure anyone could look pitiful when you beat them up and make them beg for you to not take them somewhere. She considered it for a moment. "Fine. But you're coming with me to see Will. He knows all about medicine and stuff, that need." Nico really didn't want to, but he figured that was the best offer he was going to get. He nodded. "Okay."

Will recognized that knock. It was Reyna's knock. Will got up and shoved his sadness chocolate wrappers (he ate when he was sad.) under his bed and went to the door. Just as he expected, Reyna was there. What he did not expect was for Nico to be there with her.   
"Nico? What the hell? Why are you bleeding? Never mind, come in, I'll fix you up." He was glad his parents weren't home. They would call Nico's parents, and that wouldn't be good. 

This wasn't the worst that Octavian had done. Nico wasn't that worried. He had had a concussion last time, when he told his dad. His dad told the principal and they told Nico to be less gay. "Take off your shirt." Will commanded. He was in total doctor mode. "Um, could I not?" Nico asked.   
"Take off your shirt or I will do it for you. Or we could see an actual doctor. That's what we should do, it would be the responsible choice." Will said. Nico took off his shirt, but he kept his binder on. Will inspected his stomach and arms. Then he checked the rest of him, but he got to keep his clothes on.  
"Well," Will said when he was done, "No broken bones. You have a dislocated shoulder but I can fix that in a minute. No internal bleeding or long term harm. I can get you some pain killers before I set your arm. You also have a lot of cuts on your wrist. They look recent. I'm here if you need to talk." He got Nico some painkillers.  "Oh. My. God." Reyna said, clearly excited, "Look! Nico!" She pointed out the window. He looked, like an idiot, and Will snapped his arm back into place. Nico may or may not have cursed loudly. 

They all just sat there for a few minutes. Will was the one who eventually broke the silence. "Nico? Do you want to spend the night? So I can watch you and make sure you don't get worse?" Nico considered this. "Do I have to say yes?" "No. Just if you want to." Nico nodded solemnly. "I'll ask my stepmom." 

Nico stepped outside to call his family. Reyna and Will stayed silent for a moment, then Reyna said, "Are you two....mangling limbs? Courting? Bumping uglies? Doing it? Balling? Makin' bacon? Basket making? Mattress dancing? Boning? Knocking boots? Boinking? Christening the yak? Doodle bopping? Poking beans? B-" "SHUT UP, PLEASE!" Cried Will.   
"One more." Reyna said.   
"Fine."  
"Hhhhmmmm....." She considered, "Fucking!"  
"Reyna, you're uninvited from the sleepover."

"She says I can stay." Nico came back into the room to see Will's face beet red as Reyna yelled obscenities. He left and came back a few minutes later. He was happy to see that Reyna was sitting there smirking instead of screaming, and Will was still blushing. Dang, he was cute.

Everything would be fine. Persephone said he could stay. Will was going to lend him some pajamas. He kept antidepressants in his backpack. Everything would be fine. Will's parents were gone for the long weekend. His siblings were at their friends' houses. All he had to do was not tell Will he liked him. And to not sleep talk. And not have a terrifying nightmare that made him wake up sweating and crying. It would be easy.

"Oh, god. Oh god. No. Not again. Please. No!" Will heard a quiet voice say. He was really confused for a moment before he realized Nico was spending the night. Will had really wanted Nico to sleep in his bed. Nico was injured. But Nico had blushed and stammered and said he wanted to sleep on the floor. Will had fought him for a few minutes, but Nico won.  
"Nico? Are you okay?" Nico didn't respond. He just whined and turned. Will wanted to hug him, to comfort him, to love him. While he might not be able to do the last two things, he could certainly do the first. If Nico said it was okay, of course.   
"Nico!" Will stage whispered. Nico opened his eyes. They were wide and filled with sadness and tears.   
"No." He whimpered.   
"Nico. Can I hug you?" Nico nodded. Will picked him up (he was surprised by how light Nico was) and plopped him on Will's bed, sitting next to him and squeezing him tightly.  
"Will, I don't know what my life is right now. Why am I such a fucking mess?" He sobbed into Will's chest. Nico didn't care that Will was seeing him like this. He didn't care that he could probably feel his boobs under his hoodie. He didn't care that he was showing vulnerability. He didn't care. He just wanted to be with Will.

Nico woke up wrapped in Will's arms. He started panicking, but then he remembered what happened. Then he panicked more. No. No. No. Will had seen him at his worst, there's no way he would still like him. Why did Nico have to ruin everything, just as it was being mended?

"Oh my god, Will. That was so sweet. If they say no, they're such a loser." Nico and Will were sitting under a tree in the park. Will was singing a song to Nico. He said he needed practice before he asked someone out on a  date. Nico was disappointed he wasn't his date, but he knew it would never happen.   
"Okay. But just in case, he's not a loser." Will said.  
"Will, stop being an idiot. Anyone would be so lucky to date you. Seriously, you could ask that guy out and he'd say yes." Nico pointed to an old guy sitting nearby.   
"Yes," Will stroked his chin, "But would I want to?"  
"Oh, you will."  
"What does that mean?"  
"Shut up, I'm trying to be mysterious." Nico said. They were back to being friends, as if the whole nightmare incident never happened. It made Nico think about Voltron, when Keith was like, 'We had a bonding moment.' And Lance was like, 'Nuh uh, don't remember. Didn't happen.' Except in this situation, Nico was Lance. He had much more in common with Keith, but he didn't mind that much. Lance was almost as cute as Will. Whoever Will asked would be the luckiest person in the world.

"Hey, Neeks!" Will shouted.  
"Don't call me Neeks."   
"Request denied. Anyway, um I have something to ask you."  
"What is it?" Nico asked.  
"Will you go out with me?" Will asked, blushing.  
"Nice!" Nico said, somehow still oblivious. "That was perfect. Now that you've had practice, go ask your crush."   
Will sighed. "I just did."  
"Oh." Nico dropped all hope that Will might like him. "What did they say?"  
"You didn't answer."  
"Wait......." Nico asked. "You're asking me? As in me? Nico?" Nico blushed furiously, his face set in a look of shock.   
"Uh, Yeah." Will said. "I'm asking you."  
"Oh my god!" Nico started smiling. "Yes!"

"Hey, Dad, um, I'm going to go hang out with Will if that's okay." Hades nodded. Nico put on his jacket and left the house. When he got to the McDonald's where he planned to meet Will,  the blond boy was already there. Nico sat across from him. "Hey, Sunshine." Will beamed. "Please," Nico said, "If anyone's the sunshine in this relationship, it's you."   
"You're my sunshine."   
"Oh my god, you're such a dork."  
".....But you love it?"  
"Yes, Will, I love it. We should probably order. The cashier lady is giving us dirty looks."  
"Maybe because we're a gay couple in a conservative part of Texas. But I agree, let's order."

"How many fries did you order?" Will asked, obviously impressed.   
"I didn't get a burger." Nico said, shoving more fries in his mouth. "So it's my right to eat six containers of fries."   
"I didn't say it wasn't. You eating six things of French fries is really hot." Nico choked on his French fries.

"I think you and my other friends got off on the wrong foot." Will had said. "Do you want to come over to my house today? They're all going to be there." And Nico, like an idiot, agreed. 

"Hey, guys." Nico said, sitting on the floor next to Will.   
"Hey, Deathboy." Leo said.  
"Don't call me that." Nico said.  
"I think it suits you." Hazel chimed in. Yep, Hazel was there. Their parents said Nico had to bring her. Nico had said "She's sixteen! She has her own friends!" Then Hades had raised an eyebrow and said "Nico, please take Hazel." So he did, and he was regretting more every passing minute.  
"Let's play never have I ever!" Jason chimed in. Everyone (well, almost everyone.) wanted to play, and Nico didn't want to be that person, so he played.   
"Never have I ever stuck play-doh into my mom's purse because I was scared of it." Piper said. Will put down a finger.   
"What?" Nico asked. "You did that?"  
"In my defense, I was young and it was a very creepy purse. My turn. Never have I ever.... um.. eaten an entire lasagna in one sitting."  
Nico, Piper, Jason, Leo and Reyna all put fingers down. Reyna went next. "Never have I ever gotten something stuck up my butt." Leo's face flushed as he put down a finger. "Never have I ever chugged a bottle of soy sauce to prove a point.  
"How did you know I did that?" Nico asked. Leo looked shocked. "I didn't. I was targeting Piper." Both Piper and Nico put their hands down.   
"Never have I ever," Jason said, "killed a man." Everyone looked at Nico expectantly. "What?" He asked. "I didn't kill anyone!" Jason didn't look convinced. 

 

"I don't want you to get bullied because of me!"  
"That's not your choice to make!" Will replied  
"I can't believe you right now! I've been through hell, and I will not let you make the same mistakes I did!" Nico shouted.   
"Let me?" Will scoffed. "I'm my own person, capable of doing what I want! You can't control me!"  
"I'm not trying to control you!" Nico said angrily. "I'm trying to protect you!"  
"Maybe I don't want your protection! Maybe I don't care what they say about me. I don't care what they think. Because I don't love them, I love you." Will froze, as if realizing what he just said. Nico looked up at him. "You love me?"  
"Um- I didn't mean to say that."  
"So you don't love me?"  
Will took a deep breath. "I do love you, Nico. But this is all moving so quickly."  
"Oh." Nico said. "I'm fine with that. Because I love you, too." 

Hazel walked in and almost started shrieking again. She could barely believe her eyes. Nico was lying half-asleep in Will's arms. Will was sitting there hugging him, a huge smile plastered on his face. He didn't seem to notice Hazel staring at them until she screamed, causing both boys to scream. "You two are dating?"   
Nico looked to Will. "You didn't lock the door?"  
"Locked doors are locked hearts!" Will panicked.  
"That's nonsense! Locked hearts?"   
Will shrugged, "It's what my mom says."  
"Boys," Hazel interrupted their bickering, "Are you two.......... lovers? Are you making the beast with two backs? Giving each other the green crown? Preforming the duty of Venus? Playing doctor? Baking the lasagna?"  
"God, you're worse than Reyna." Will said at the same time Nico said "What the hell, Hazel?"   
"Well, are you? Together, that is?"  
Nico and Will looked to each other. Will knew Nico didn't want to tell anyone, that's why they were fighting. Nico knew that Will wanted everyone to know. Will was about to say no, they weren't dating, when Nico opened his mouth.   
"Yeah. Will and I are dating."  
Will was shocked, and it showed. "I thought you didn't want to tell anyone."   
"I don't really," Nico responded, "But it means a lot to you. Besides, you were right. When you come out isn't my choice to make." Nico hugged his boyfriend and was about to kiss him until he remembered Hazel was watching. 

The plan was for Will to casually refer to Nico as his boyfriend and wait for the (true) rumor to spread. People would most likely like Will much less but things would otherwise stay the same. That's not what happened. Fortunately, people didn't start hating Will. Unfortunately, they did start hating someone. Nico. Of course, most people already hated him, but now almost everyone did. He got notes stuffed into his locker. You stole my boyfriend. Or, kill yourself, faggot. And, You're a tranny and a fag? I bet your parents would thank whoever killed you. And, Nico's favorite, you turned my boyfriend gay with your magical genitalia.  
He knew they were idiots. He wasn't afraid of them. It still hurt.

"Hey!" I didn't respond. I wasn't going to give Octavian the satisfaction of acknowledgment. "I said hey!" Octavian ran to catch up with me.  
"Hey." I said to him. "You seem pretty desperate to talk to me."  
"Well, I wanted to apologize." He said. I raised an eyebrow.   
"No you don't, Octavian. What do you want from me?" Octavian chuckled. Why were people always chuckling? It was weird!  
"You're right, girlie. I want to know how you got Solace to like your gay butt. Witchcraft? Voodoo?"  
"Yes. I can't believe you discovered my secret! I cast a spell to ensure Will stays with my 'gay butt.' Every night, after I sacrifice a live raven and before I put frog toes into my cauldron, I cast the spell. It's both emotionally and physically draining. I can't believe the hex's still working. It usually wears off around-" Punch. There it was. He knew Octavian wasn't going to apologize, only make things worse. 

 

"I swear, Nico, I had no idea!" Will begged. "I thought they would leave you alone! I thought they would come after me! I'm so so so sorry."  
"Will, it's fine. I'm used to it." Nico said.  
"No!" Will cried. "It's not fine! You're getting hurt because of me! I can't let you get hurt because of me."  
"Will, a few days ago you said, and I quote, 'Let me? I'm my own person, capable of doing what I want.' And that's true. I can't any control what you do. But you also can't control what I do."   
"But I care about your wellbeing. Isn't there anything I can do?"  
"I don't think so. High school's almost done. Just be there for me. Don't leave me."  
"I will never leave you."

Two years later.  
"Ugh. This is the worst," Will complained to Nico.   
"Shut up, Solace." Nico laughed. Will was writing an essay for his biochemistry class. "Can you please get me a donut? I love you."   
"You're such a dork, Will."  
"You love it."  
"Yeah. I do." Nico walked to their kitchen and grabbed some donuts, bringing them back to their living room. The college campus let them be roommates, which was awesome. When Will found this out he said "And they were roommates!" And Nico tried really hard to not laugh. Will was pretty sure Octavian was in prison now for messing with the wrong person. So that was something. 

"Hazel? What are you doing here?" Will asked.   
"I'm here to visit my brother and his awesome boyfriend, duh." She said. She walked in and hugged Will.  
"Hazel?" Nico asked, walking into Hazel's view.  "I had no idea you were coming? How are you?"   
"I'm doing fine! So..... when's the wedding?"  
Nico sighed. "We aren't engaged yet, Hazel."  
"Yeah, Hazel." Will said. "Stop telling him all my plans. It's supposed to be a surprise." He kissed Nico's forehead.  

Nico couldn't believe how lucky he was. He wished he could go back in time and tell his younger self how everything would work out.   
Will was still in disbelief that Nico was his boyfriend. If he had known a few years ago how great everything would turn out, he wouldn't have believed himself. He would've called himself a liar. But he wasn't a liar. Everything was true, and it was amazing.


	67. Secrets

Nico's POV  
I take a deep breath. Almost all my friends are here. I can't believe I actually have friends, much less ones that care enough to come over. I invited everyone (Piper, Jason, Percy, Annabeth, Leo, Hazel, Reyna, Will, and Frank) over to my cabin. I have something important to tell them. 

Reyna knows already, as do Percy, Annabeth, and Jason. But I'm mostly inviting them for support. Jason was there with the whole Eros thing, Reyna saw my thoughts when I destroyed that Bruce guy (I still feel kinda bad about that), I told Percy and Annabeth was standing next to him.

"So," I announce to the group, "I'm transgender and gay."

Will's POV  
"So," I hear Nico say, "I'm transgender and gay." He pauses. "Most of you know about the trans thing, some of you already know I'm gay. But I just wanted to tell you." He looks mortified. I try to contain my excitement. Not that he seems uncomfortable, but that he's gay. The keyword there is try. I tried, and I failed. I stood up and yelled "Nice!" Everyone stares at me. "I love meeting other trans people?" I say, my voice raising considerably. The group seems to accept this answer, and stop staring at me. 

As soon as I'm outside Nico's Cabin, I sigh with relief. No one knows I like him. Expect all my siblings, Chiron, and anyone in camp who isn't either super oblivious or a complete idiot. So...... most everyone, I guess. But not Nico, because he feels as if he's unworthy of love. Oh dang. Saying that aloud makes me realize that it's pretty sad. Nico deserves love. We all deserve love if we want it! Maybe I should tell him. He might like me back. But if he doesn't, he'll think that I only became close to him because I wanted to date him, which isn't true. I mean, it's kinda true. I do want to date him and hug him and hold his hand and kiss him and cuddle him when he's sad and.... Sorry. Got off track for a second there. But I also don't want to ruin our friendship. I worked so hard for this. Nico pushes everyone away, but I push back. I'm very stubborn. I'd much rather we remain friends than not see each other at all. But I really like him. No. Will, stop being so selfish. 

I'm a good person. I just sometimes hide in bushes behind the Hades cabin. Honestly, it's not my fault. I was standing back here when Nico's friends started leaving. I didn't want anyone to confront me about what happened a moment ago. So, I did what anyone in my situation would do, and I jumped into a small hedge. I sat there for a few minutes to make sure the danger had passed. As I climbed out of the bush, I saw Nico standing above me. He looked at me with a look on his face that was either disgust or surprise. His facial expressions weren't always clear.  
"Will? What the Hades are you doing here?"  
"Doing where?" I ask, because I'm not sure what else to say. I'm sure as heck not going to give the real answer.  
"In a bush." He raises an eyebrow. "Behind my cabin. Covered in leaves. And dirt."  
"Oh, yeah. Right. I was, um, hiding a body."  
"What?"   
"Jared died."   
"Jared died a long time ago. My friends in Valhalla say he's doing well."  
"You have friends in Valhalla?"  
"Stop changing the subject." He sighs. "Why are you hiding in a bush behind my cabin?"  
"Am I? No, I'm pretty sure I wasn't just doing that."  
"I'm going to give you one more chance before I hurt you. What are you doing?" Dang! He didn't believe my well thought out lie. How did he see through it? "Um," I said. "I was cleaning the ground. You deserve to walk on dust free grass!" He whips out his sword and pins me against the cabin. While I had imagined this happening, it was under very different circumstances. For example, no sword. "Why. Are. You. Doing this?" I swallow hard. "I was hiding from your friends." Nico doesn't seem to believe this, seeing as he just continues to stand there. "Really!" I say. "I was. When you said you were gay I got excited because I'm also gay and I thought maybe... yeah. And I didn't want your friends to talk to me about it." Nico accepts this answer, sheathing his sword and backing away slightly, enough for me to move without bumping into him. I quickly step away so I'm out of stabbing distance. I'm the best healer here, so if I get stabbed, Kayla will have to heal me, and that will be terrible for both of us. Fortunately, he doesn't stab me. He just nods and smiles awkwardly. "Sorry about that." He says, "I thought you were spying on me like Jason did that time." He stared into the distance for a moment, probably thinking about Jason. Jason's cute, expect when he gets more than eleven hours of sleep. Then he becomes a perv to rival Enrique. 

"So," Nico asks as he stands there uncomfortably. Oh my gods, he's so dam cute. "What were you saying? You trailed off."  
"No I didn't." I respond, hoping he'll drop it. He doesn't.  
"Uh, yeah you did. You said," He changes his voice to a very stereotypical southern accent. "'When you said you were gay I got excited because I'm also gay and I thought maybe... yeah." He dropped the inaccurate voice. Thank the gods. It was terrible. I hope I don't sound like that. "So," Nico continues, "You said it. I was there." I sigh, looking anywhere but at him. "I was saying something embarrassing." I say. "I'll only tell you if you tell me three of your secrets." Nico laughs. It's a beautiful sound, even if it is at my expense. "Do you really think I'm going to do that?"  
"Yes?" I smile. "Because then you can ruin my life!" Nico suddenly looks very alarmed. "Why would I want to destroy your life?" I shrug in response. I recently found out most people don't keep blackmail files on their friends, but what can I say. I'm the king of trust issues.

"Fine." He sighs. "I'll tell you small three secrets because I want more for my blackmail file on you." Awwwww. He has a blackmail on me! That's so cute! "Okay. First, once I chugged an entire bottle of soy sauce to prove a point." What? Why?   
"What point?"  
"That I was capable of it."   
I nod. "Go on." He shifts the way he's standing so his weight is more on his left leg. "I used to be obsessed with a card game." "Everyone knows that. It's not a secret." "A secret is something you don't tell someone, and I never tell anyone about the cringe monster that is little Nico. You never said it had to be a new secret. So I'm counting it." "Ugh." I groan. I probably should protest more, but he looks so happy, so I let it slide. "And once I killed a man." He says the last one so casually before looking at me expectantly. "What's your secret?" He asks.   
"Wait. You killed someone?" How was that the last secret? Why would he tell me that? Oh my gods!  
"That's what I just said. Hearing problems? Almost all your siblings are doctors, I'm sure they could fix that."   
"Who did you kill?!?!" I ask frantically.   
"That's three. But his name was Bruce and he deserved to die. I don't say that lightly. What's your secret?" Oh dang. I didn't think he would agree to the game. I thought he would scoff and walk away. He didn't, obviously, seeing as how he was standing in front of me.   
"Maybe," I say, desperately looking for a way out of the whole I dug myself into. "Someone in the infirmary needs me. Gotta go!" I start running, ashamed that I didn't hold up my end of deal. I mean, it's better than telling him and ruing my favorite friendship, but still. 

Unfortunately, I am not fast. I mean, I can outrun a bunch of Roman soldiers, but Reyna isn't one of them. Reyna is, without a doubt in my mind, the fastest person I have ever met. She runs after me and halfway to the infirmary she tackles me to the ground. I didn't even know she was there. Was she just waiting in a tree waiting until I tried to run? What the Hades? "Reyna? Where did you come from?" I ask. "Don't change the subject! What is your secret?" She shouts, earring several frightened stares from campers around us. I wave to them. "Everything's fine. We're just.... lying on the dirt. Ya know, like you do." Everyone, apparently satisfied with this answer, looks away. Reyna gets off of me, grabbing my hand and pulling me back into Nico's cabin. He's standing in the same place he was this morning when he came out. "Thanks, Reyna. But you really don't need to do this." He says, smiling gratefully at her. "I did it, and I'm staying." She plops herself onto his bed. "And so are my dogs." I may or may not start fanboying because there were doggos. Then I saw they were made of metal and could kill me quite easily. "They'll tear you apart if you lie." She says.  
"Can I tell half truths?" I ask. Wrong move. Her silver dog starts growling. "Taking that as a no. Welp, I'll be going, nice chat."   
"Nice try, Solace. I did not tell you stuff for nothing. And Reyna dragged you back here, even when I asked her not to." Nico crossed his arms. "So spill." I smile and open my mouth as if I'm about to speak, but I don't speak. I run. And this time, Reyna doesn't catch me.

~The Next Day~

It's a slow day in the infirmary today, and I'm bored out of my mind. Reyna, Hazel, and Frank left last night, Jason is (hopefully) sleeping less than eleven hours, and Nico isn't speaking to me. To be fair, it's only been a day since he's stopped. And I think it's because I ran off. So it's more my fault than his. I'm still thinking about him when another patient walks in. I look up and shake my head, most likely hallucinating. I'm not, but it's Nico. He's standing there, cold and unsmiling. So I say the first thing that comes to my head.  
"Wassup homie?"  
"What? Doesn't matter. Will, I'm fine with you not telling me. I'm sorry I got mad. Also, I'm sorry I threatened to stab you. I was wrong to put you on the spot." What? He was apologizing to me? "It's your life and I should have minded my own business. I'm sorry." I just stare at him in shock. He stands there in what I imagine is not shock. "Wow." He says when I've gone a few full minutes not responding. "Okay. I'll just, um, go. Sorry for bothering you again." "No." I say, not thinking, just talking. "Please don't go. I like you. I like hanging out with you."  
"Then why were you staring at me like that? Do I have something on my face?"  
"No. Well, yes, you do have a lot of hair in your eyes-"  
"I didn't mean hair, I meant, like, food or something." He explains as if I wasn't messing with him.   
"I was surprised that you were apologizing to me. I should've told you when I said I would. I'll tell you know." I take a deep breath. "I-"  
"No." Nico cuts me off. "Don't do anything you don't feel comfortable with."   
"Well now I kinda want to say it, but you might be mad."   
"I'll be your friend no matter what."  
"I like you." I look at him to see his reaction. He has none. "Okay. I like you too. What's the secret? If you want to tell me. No pressure."  
"That was it."  
"Yeah, okay. Of course you like me, we're friends." Oh. My. Gods. This boy was dense.   
"No, Nico. I like like you."  
"I don't know what that means. You just said like twice, is that a code for hate or something?" I inhale and put my hands together, pointing to him as exhaling "boi."  
"I love that meme." He says. How does he know that meme but not know what I meant a moment ago? He's so good at pop culture and modern slang sometimes, but other times he's really bad at it. I open up my laptop (Chiron lets us have them for medical records and searching sicknesses and stuff) and look up 'old timey slang for dating'

I do not find any good sayings and I'm about to just say 'let's go steady.' Because I heard someone say that in an old movie once, but before I can, Nico starts laughing hysterically. When did he start standing behind me?  
"What?" I ask.  
"Old timey slang for dating? Oh my gods! Just say 'I have a crush on you.' Plus, who do you want to ask out that's 'old timey'? Chiron? Gross, he's thousands of years older than you."  
"I'm not a furry, Nico. Also, Chiron isn't hot. I'm into someone who is."  
"Oh my gods, is that your secret? You love Chiron? Wait till Kayla finds out. How will you tell her?" Wow, for someone so stoic and cold, you'd be surprised how energetic he could get. "Hey, Kayla, guess what? I'm boning a centaur." Okay, I tried really, really hard not to laugh. But that pushed it over the limit.   
"Oh my gods." I say between breaths of air. "I don't love Chiron!"  
"Um, so you're just playing with his heart? I don't think so."  
"It's not hecking Chiron." I'm on the floor now, my stomach hurting because really? Chiron?   
"Well then who is it?" He sits down next to me. I'm laughing so hard I don't even realize what I'm saying until I've already said it.   
"You're such an idiot. I have a crush on you." He stops laughing a moment after I do. "Wait. You're into me? Why? I'm terrible?" I start laughing again, mostly at his facial expression. "You're not that terrible."  
"Thanks a lot."  
"And you're terrible in a good way. Like the beach. The sun is great, but the sand gets in your butt. Yet you still have fun, and you don't hate it. You love the beach."   
"I hate the beach." He says. "But I get what you're saying, and I appreciate it. Thanks." He sits silently for a moment, staring into the distance. I imagine that it's quite hard to stare into the distance when the only distance is an infirmary wall. I wouldn't know. I've never tried. "So," Nico asked, "Like like means crush like? Hm. I feel so hip." I try to keep a straight face, but I fail. I guess nothing about me is straight? Get it? Because I'm queer? And not straight? Get it? Jokes are always better when you over explain them. Trust me, I'm a doctor.   
"Well I like like you, too." He smiles and leans over to me, smiling mischievously. "You think I'm hot?"


	68. Sexual Education

Hazel POV  
I was tied up in the Zeus Cabin. I had come from camp Jupiter with a godly negotiation group so I could visit Nico, but look where it had gotten me. Percy and Jason had tied Nico, Will, Frank, and I to chairs and placed us in the middle of the Zeus Cabin. We'd been there for what felt like hours when Jason walked in and said, "Welcome to sexual education for couples of the underworld! Today we will cover the basics, and at the end there will be time for questions. Any questions?"   
Surprisingly, Nico was the first to speak. "I have a question. What the actual fuck is going on here?" Percy walked in. "Well, Nico, none of you have parents, so we decided to teach you the ins and outs of a healthy sexual life."   
Will spoke up. "I'm a doctor, I already know these kinds of things. Could I please leave?"  
"No." Jason answered.  
"Why not?"  
"Because then you will have left Nico to suffer all alone!"  
"Um," Nico interrupted, "The literal lord of the Dead taught Hazel and I all this, so, we'll just be going."   
"Nice try, Neeks, but Percy and I have been planning this for weeks."  
"Okay, that's really, really creepy. I'm the son of Hades, so I know creepy. Either you let us go, or I'm going to tell Reyna about this." That usually works. But not this time.   
"Nope!" Jason proceeded to show a PowerPoint presentation that left everyone rattled.   
3rd Person POV  
By the end of Percy's extremely detailed drawings of genitalia, Hazel had passed out. Just as Jason was about to explain to the group why intercourse was a natural part of a healthy relationship, Reyna burst in. "What the Hades, Percy? And Jason! I expected more from you!" Jason looked uncomfortable (not as uncomfortable as Nico or Frank.) "We were giving our friend sex ed."   
"Please help us Reyna. Hazel has fainted," Nico said, "Also, Look at Frank. I think he's in shock." But Reyna wasn't listening. She was chewing out Jason and Percy. "Why the everloving Poseidon would you do this? Is that a giant wooden penis? What is wrong with you two?" She kept scolding them for several minutes until remembering that the others where tied to chairs. Will, upon getting untied, picked up unconscious Hazel and ran her to the infirmary. Frank didn't seem to register the fact that he was untied, still sitting in his chair silently, staring blankly at the wall. Nico immediately walked over to their captors and started screaming at them. And that, my dear friends, is why Jason and Percy are no longer allowed to be alone together.


	69. Sewer Clowns

"Sewer Clowns deserve equal rights!" Piper shouted. Everyone was at a protest for the rights of sewer clowns. It started when Will saw a pole with a wire hanging out of it. It was pulled taught and leading into a sewer. Will had complained that it was a safety hazard, but he wasn't sure who he could report it to. So he just told his friends. Piper got really mad for some reason.   
"They need it for their Wi-Fi! You use Wi-Fi! Do they not deserve Wi-Fi?"  
"Who's they?"  
"The sewer clowns!"  
"They lure children into sewers." Will protested.  
"Because they're lonely! And so the children can experience the joy of really good sewer Wi-Fi. They're people, just like you and me."  
"Are they though?"   
"I don't know! Are you a person, Will?"  
"I'm done with this conversation."

"Seriously, Leo, why don't they just put the cord somewhere else?"  
"I don't know, man," Leo said, "Maybe the clowns live there."  
"I guess. Not all clowns have homes."  
"They do have homes. It's the sewer. Trust me, I've lived in sewers, and some of them are pretty cool."  
"Why sewers though?"  
"Do they not deserve to live where they wish? Do you consider them a subpar species?"   
"Honestly," Will replied, "Yeah. They're sewer clowns."  
"Yes, yes. We've established this. And the cord is for Wi-Fi, duh. You use Wi-Fi. Why are they any different?"  
"You're hopeless." Will complained as he left. 

"What?" Nico asked. "Why didn't you report it?"  
"I didn't know how. But really? You're not going to talk about the guy from It?" Will inquired.  
"No. Why would I?"  
"Because the wire ran into a sewer! Where clowns live!"  
"Clowns don't actually live in sewers, Will. Percy owns a house."  
"BBBUUUUURRRNNNN!" Yelled Will.  
"Anyway, that's ridiculous." Nico continued, "I'm on your side for this. I don't fully get what's going on, but you're extremely enthusiastic and I love you, so I'm in."

Back to the protest.  
Piper, Leo, Frank, Grover, Tyson, and Percy were protesting that sewer clowns deserved rights. Will, Nico, Annabeth, Hazel, Jason, and Reyna thought it was ridiculous.  
"Rights for sewer clowns! Rights for sewer clowns! Why should we have rights when they do not?"   
"Because they are fictional, grotesque beings!" Reyna shouted back. She held a sign that read 'Down With Clowns!' Reyna secretly had a love of dramatic signs.   
"I'm a satyr! Are you calling me grotesque?"  
"No. We're calling clowns grotesque."  
"Oh. Well, that's true. I'm switching sides." Grover walked across the green to stand with the anti-clown group.   
"WE WIN!!!" Will screamed. "GROVER IS ON OUR SIDE NOW!"   
"Please stop yelling." Hazel said.   
"Right. Sorry. We win! We have more members in our clown club than you do! Ha! Victory!"


	70. Shower

Nico and Will were perfect for each other. Will loved all of Nico's quirks, and Nico loved Will's. Their personalities fit together perfectly. Except for one thing.

Will was a morning bird. He woke up every day at eight am at the latest. That's Will sleeping in. Most of the time, he woke up at six. Nico liked to sleep until noon. And because of this, Will was often lonely. 

"Nico," Will whined, "Get up. Pleeeeeeeaaase?"  
"No." Nico said into his pillow. "I don't want to."  
"Please? Come on. Do it for me?" Will said, doing puppy dog eyes. Unfortunately, Nico's eyes were closed, so he he did not see them.   
"Nope."   
"I just want my beautiful boyfriend to cuddle with me. What's wrong about that?"   
"We can cuddle here. In bed. The perfect place for cuddling." Nico said, not opening his eyes.   
"I just love you so much," Will traced his fingers over Nico's face. "I don't want to be up without you."  
"Then don't be up. Come back to sleep."

Okay, so sweet talking didn't work. Maybe Will could try complaining. 

"Nico, c'mon. I'm lonely. You're being a bad boyfriend. I'm so sad."  
Nico opened one eye. "Don't start that. You don't mean any of it. You're just trying to get me out of bed."  
"Well, I mean, yeah, but I am lonely. Please?"  
"No."  
"Fine." Will shrugged, taking up a new tactic. "I'll leave you be. Asleep and alone."  
"Thank you. I'm very appreciative."  
"But.... I'm going to take a shower before breakfast. I was wondering if you wanted to join me. But since you're so set on sleeping.... oh well."  
Nico's head shot up. "Wait! No! I'm up!"


	71. Side Order

Oh my god, this waiter is quite possibly the hottest man I have ever had the pleasure of seeing. 

"Okay, chicken quesadilla and rice for you, and beef tacos with beans for you. Is that all?"  
"For now." Hazel says with a mischievous grin.  
"Um..... okay?" The waiter says before walking off with our orders.   
"Hazel," I ask, "What?"  
"What what?"  
"Why did you say for now?"  
"Because I also want to get you a side order of that dick."  
I almost do a spit take. "What the fuck is wrong with you?"   
"I simply want to get you a boyf."  
"I remember when I thought you were innocent."

"Careful, the plate is hot, too." The waiter, Will, says.   
"Too?" I ask, confused. He gently pokes my shoulder and makes a sizzley sound. Then he walks away.   
"Hazel! Hazel!" I panic. "What do I do?"   
"Him!"

AN// Okay so this is obviously not original but I saw this tumblr post and just wrote it as Solangelo.


	72. Snowday

Nico's  POV  
Great. Just what I needed to happen today. Getting snowed in and stuck in the worst place on Earth. High school. Here I am, locked in Hell with 700 demon kids. Just how I wanted to spend my Friday night! How did you guess, universe? You're too kind. Take back this gift, I insist. Take. It. Back. I do not want to be cooped up in a cold, dark building with hormonic nightmares. 

We're all called into the cafeteria. Since 700 people wouldn't fit in here, I assume the others are in the gym. Ugh. Why would anyone ever want to do manual labor for fun? Just like, do they go home and say, 'Gee, today wasn't hard enough. I need to add more discomfort to my life. I know! I'll tear my muscles in half so they'll get bigger!' Like, why? Why would anyone subject themselves to that? I get being fit for a reason, like if you need to lift heavy boxes for your job, or run fast to escape people on the streets asking you about the environment. But just for the sake of making life harder? I will never understand.

Sorry, I got off track there. As I was saying, many of us were in the cafeteria, waiting to hear what was happening.   
"Students." The principal said from a makeshift pedestal. Her microphone screeched. "I'm afraid we've been snowed in. Trust me, I'm not any happier than you to be here. I can't believe this is my life. How did it come to this?" She stares off into the distance for a moment, a vague look in her eyes. "Anyway, we're all stuck here. Everyone is to remain in their homerooms. You may go to your lockers to get your stuff, but after that, only leave your homerooms when the teacher says you may. Understood?" She asked. The sounds of complaints and questions filled my ears. "Remember!" She shouts over noise. "Raised hands are happy hands! Quiet mouths are good mouths!" This did not make anyone quiet down, so the teachers began gathering up students and forcing them into their rooms. The only good thing about this is that they aren't separating people by gender or sex, so I get to be with Hazel. Snow beats heteronormative mindsets, I suppose. 

"Kill me." I groan to Hazel as she rubs her forehead in frustration. If you didn't already know, being trapped in a room with a bunch of high schoolers is not fun. In one corner, there are the nerdy guys, playing this Dungeons and Dragons type game one of them brought to school for some reason. My friend Will tries to play with them, but he's soon kicked out of the game. "There's nothing wrong with always being a healer." He says angrily to the other people in the group.   
"Will." One of the people says, "Either you chose something else for once or you don't play."  
"If you can't accept me for who I am," Will says in a sad voice, "Then I guess I'll go. Times change. People leave. I need someone who will love me despite my desire to always be a healer in role-play games." He dramatically holds his hand up to his head like a swooning woman in an old cartoon. "Goodbye." He walks away, still standing in the pose he had struck moments earlier. I'm smiling at his antics when he looks at me, making direct eye contact. "Hello, Nico."  
"Hey, Will."   
"Can I hang out with you guys?" He walks over to us, not waiting for an answer, and starts talking. 

We talk for hours. The situation we're in fades away. At some point, Hazel leaves to do something on her own. 

Will and I talked about our lives and hobbies. We're already pretty close friends, but it's nice to talk about the more recent updates. Will's brother's YouTube video got a million views, so that's all Austin's been talking about for a month now. 

"Did you read the new Finn Files book?" I ask. Will and I have the same favorite book series.   
"Yes. I can't believe Canella." Will responds, "I love her but she needs to chill."   
"And the love triangle. I used to ship Finn and Canella but now I kinda ship them with Xander? What's your favorite ship?"  
Will looks nervously from side to side. "Us."  
"What?"  
"I mean, um, Finnella. OTP."   
"No, what did you mean by that?"  
"I mean, I ship them because they've known each other for such a long time. Ever since Finn knew they were part elf, Canella was there. Xander is cute, but he and Finn don't have any chemistry. It's just-"  
"No, what did you mean us?"  
Will sighs. "I like you."  
"Thanks. I like you, too." I respond.  
"No, like, like like." He says hands moving nervously with each 'like.'  
"I like you, too." I say again.   
"No, like, like like. Like, love like."  
"Um, thanks? I like you too."  
"No, I mean, like, romantic like."  
"Yeah." I say, "I got that the first time you said it."  
"No, I mean, like, I'm romantically and sexually attracted to you."  
I sigh. "Yes, I'm telling you, I feel the same way."  
"Oh." Will says, smiling at me uncomfortably. "Nice."   
"Now kiss." Hazel's voice says from behind me. I turn and see Hazels standing uncomfortably close and holding her hands together in a heart shape. "Get to it you love birds!"   
"Hazel, please."  
"That's what you'll be saying to Will tonight."  
"I'll be saying 'Hazel, please?'" I ask confusedly.   
"You'll be saying, 'Will, please.'" Hazel says, raising her eyebrows suggestively.   
"Why would— oh. Go away, Hazel. Please. I'm begging you."  
"That's what you'll be saying tonight."  
"Go away."


	73. Special Someone

I'm sitting at the dining table in my father's palace. He's trying to be a positive figure in my life. He told me this in a monotone voice, sounding like he was reading from a script. But hey, he's trying.   
"How's camp?" He asks, breaking the silence.   
"It's going well." Dam. I'm awkward. He looks at me with amusement in his eyes. "Do you have a special someone?" I blush furiously. Why did he have to ask that? "Um, yeah, actually, I, um, I have a boyfriend named Will. Will Solace." Hades smirks at me. "Why didn't you tell me sooner?"  
I stare at him "What?" "I already knew, of course, I'm a god, I have certain abilities. Pushing that aside for the moment, the son of Apollo? Hmmmm... I don't know how I feel about that." He pauses to think. "Better than that Percy boy. You went on about him for weeks. It was quite annoying." How am I supposed to respond to that? "I hope this 'Will' is good enough for my son. Someone like your sister's boyfriend. What's his name again? Ah, yes, Frank."  
I nod, still not sure about what to say. "Well, um, Will is very sweet. Frank likes him. Will enjoys hugging me, but always listens to me when I say I don't want to be touched."   
"And.... How far have you two gone?" I blush even harder, if that's possible. "I'm not going to answer that."


	74. Spin the Bottle

Everyone knew that Nico and Will liked each other. They could see the little smiles they gave each other, how their gazes seemed to linger just a second too long. It was pretty obvious, once you saw the way they blushed whenever someone mentioned the other boy's name.  
Will got the most adorable face when he thought of Nico. His eyes got a far away look in them, like he was staring at a beautiful sunset. He smiled just slightly, a smile different from his normal one, although no one could quite put their finger on what about it was different. It was, simply put, very easy to tell when Will was thinking of Nico.  
When Nico thought of Will, it was difficult to know, unless you knew him very well. Hazel could always figure it out. Piper sometimes knew. Percy and Jason were painfully oblivious. Whenever they were told Nico or Will were thinking of the other, they totally freaked out. But it was agonizing to see how much they cared for each other without them knowing, thinking their love was unrequited.  
One day, Jason came running up to Piper yelling.   
"OTP alert!"  
"What's going on, Jason?"  
OTP alert was a not-so-secret code they had for when Solangelo did something cute.  
"Pipes, brace yourself."  
"I live with my loved-crazed Aphrodite half-siblings. I think I can handle knowing that the hands of Nico and Will brushed together at archery, or that you saw Nico sketching Will's face again."  
"Yes, yes. I know, you say this every time, but this time it's serious. I caught them..."  
He paused for dramatic effect.  
"Gazing into each other's eyes lovingly!!!!"  
Piper gasped and pretended to faint.  
"Oh dear me, how scandalous! What a dashing feat. How dare they do that in public?"  
Jason rolled his eyes.   
"When you put it that way, it doesn't sound as exciting. But, putting that aside, I have a plan to get Nico and Will together."  
"Does it involve a bear trap this time?" Piper shuddered. She replayed the event in her head.

~Flashback~  
It was not a rare thing for Jason, Percy, Piper, and Leo to try (and presumably fail) to get Solangelo together. Last time it involved a bear trap. It hadn't worked, but it had made Will ask a lot of questions when he healed Leo. "Why were you playing with a bear trap?"  
"I wasn't."  
Will stared at him skeptically.  
Leo sighed, "How did you know?"  
"These are marks from an animal trap. Also, I heard you screaming about a bear trap when you came in."  
"Oh."  
By the way, how did you manage to get your shoulder stuck? Did Chiron approve of this?"  
"It's a long story. One that I will speak about no further."  
"Why..."  
"Stop talking, man. I said I'm done. Ow!"  
~Flashback End~

"No bear traps this time. No need to worry, Pipes."  
"So what's your idea?"  
Jason responded simply, "Meet us at Percy's cabin at 7 pm."

Jason was inside with Percy, Leo, Annabeth, who had joined their group after much persuasion from Percy, and Hazel, who was visiting for a few days. They were all getting settled in when Piper arrived. She looked around, waved to Annabeth and Hazel, and sat on an empty bed.  
"What's our plan?" Annabeth spoke first.  
"Okay." Jason took a deep breath. "Spin the bottle!"  
"What's spin the bottle?"  
Everyone looked at Hazel. Leo slapped his forehead.   
"I keep forgetting you're super old. Spin the bottle is when you spin a bottle, like the name suggests, and whoever it lands has to kiss the spinner."  
Hazel blushed.   
"Oh."  
Percy stepped forward and rolled a map onto his bed.   
"Um, Seaweed Brain? Why do we need a map? Isn't this just going to happen indoors?"  
"Because, Wisegirl, the map adds effect. Studies have shown that people work better when a map is presented."  
"That is so untrue. Plus, it's a map of Colorado. Why do you even have that?"  
While Percy and Annabeth were bickering, the others started scheming. It was mostly Piper and Jason.  
"So, I'll invite Nico, plus some random campers so to not cause any suspicion, over to my cabin."  
"We shouldn't tell him what the game is, or he'll never agree."  
"Definitely. We should have it in his cabin, actually, so he'll have nowhere to go if he wants to leave, forcing him to stay."  
"Wouldn't he just summon skeletons to kick us out?"  
Hazel spoke up,"Will isn't allowing him to use any 'Underworld-ey powers' until he has completely healed. I've never heard Nico listen to anyone like he listens to Will. It's amazing."  
"His cabin it is! Leo, it will be your job to get a bottle, one made of a precious metal, so Hazel can control it. We wouldn't want Nico to have to kiss Annabeth."  
"I'm on it, boss!"  
When Annabeth heard her name, she walked back over to the group.  
"Sorry about that. C'mon Seaweed Brain!"  
Percy was grinning.   
"What will Wisegirl and I do for this plan?"  
"Annabeth will make sure it goes well. We don't want another bear trap incident."  
Leo shuddered. "I thought we agreed to never again speak of that."  
"Sorry. Anyway, Percy will play along. That's pretty much it. Sorry, bro."  
"That's alright. It'll be nice to just sit back and make out with Annabeth."  
Annabeth glared at him furiously.   
"I, unlike you, have a job, Percy."  
"I was just kidding. Kinda..." He trailed off.

"No."  
"C'mon Deathboy!"  
"Don't call me that."  
"You let Will call you that."  
"That's different."  
"How so?"  
"Go away, Jason."  
"Fine. I'll stop bothering you. But at least come see this thing by the lake. It's amazing!"  
Nico stepped out of his cabin into the cool autumn air. He was wearing his usual attire of black skinny jeans, skull shirt, and aviator jacket. Jason was ecstatic that he convinced Nico to leave his cabin. 

"Look at that!"  
Nico couldn't see object for which he was supposed to be looking.  
"What?"  
"A dog!"  
"That's a pile of sticks. Maybe you need a stronger glasses prescription."  
Jason sighed, "Maybe. Okay, you can go back to whatever you were doing. I'm just gonna walk with you."  
As they walked back to Nico's place, Jason saw Piper walking over to the infirmity to invite (force) Will into going.

"Why the Hades are you guys here? Also, hi Hazel. It's nice to see you."  
Will walked in.   
"Hey guys! Piper said you needed help with a broken wrist. Who's injured?"  
Piper smiled shamelessly.   
"There is no broken wrist, is there? Why did you bring me here?"  
Percy locked the door behind Will.  
"We are going to play a game."  
"Is this like 'Saw?' Because I can't go through that again."  
"Again?" Jason paused for a moment."That doesn't matter. We are going to play... spin the bottle."  
Nico groaned. "Can I just leave?"  
Hazel said sweetly, "But, Neeks, where would you go? We're in your cabin, after all."  
Nico looked and sounded angry, but impressed. "You were in on this? Oh, gods, Hazel!"  
Jason stood up. "Gather around in a circle. Leo, do you have the bottle?"  
Leo grinned and nodded.  
"Then let us begin!"

"It's your turn to go, Will."   
Will was obviously uncomfortable. He spun. Hazel knew that it was important to make sure it landed on Nico. He was the only one Will would be kissing tonight!   
Hazel succeeded. The bottle pointed to Nico. He didn't notice at first.   
"Psst. Nico."  
Nico looked up and smiled.   
"We'll give you some privacy." Everyone but the two boys left.  
Will leaned into Nico, stopping halfway to make sure Nico wanted this.   
"I love you, Nico Di Angelo,"  
"I love you, Will Solace,"  
When their lips touched, it was the most magical moment in Jason's life. He was watching through the window.

"Are you two in love?"  
"No, Lacy, we're just best friends." Nico winked at her. Will was standing next to him, looking at Percy, Jason, Leo, Annabeth and Piper sitting on a rock nearby. They seemed to be discussing how to their plan could have failed.  
"Should we tell them we've been dating for a while now?"   
"No. It's fun watching them plan."  
"I can't believe they haven't realized yet."  
"Annabeth has, but she likes seeing the others struggle. And, I told Hazel this morning before she left."  
They smiled at each other and walked away.


	75. Spoopy

"This is great." Percy said, shoveling more blue candy into his mouth. "I had this friend, when I was young, whose parents made him wait to eat his candy until they had checked it for razor blades."   
The camp went silent. Everyone looked up at Percy.   
"What? Razor blades?" Leo said. Suddenly, as if in a choreographed movement, the group ran toward Will.  
"Will! Will! I just swallowed a tiny knife."  
"What?" Will asked.  
"Percy said there were razor blades in our Halloween candy." Leo said.   
"No I didn't," Percy said. "I simply said something about my childhood friend, Mark, whose parents checked all his Halloween candy for razor blades."  
"Dammit Percy! You know how suggestible these idiots are!" Will said, gesturing to the group. "Now I have to check everyone for razor blades in her stomach. He turned to the group. "Y'all realize that you would be dead if you swallowed any razor blades?"  
"I've survived though worse." Nico said from beside Will. Everyone jumped, seemingly not noticing the short boy until he had spoken. "No, I technically died then. I'm just stirring the pot." He shrugged. "It's Halloween. This is when my power is strongest."  
"Okay? Well, anyway," Piper continued to what Leo was saying a moment before, "You're going to need to scan all of our stomachs to make sure we're safe."

"Okay, Leo. No sharp objects in your stomach. However," Will said, holding up a picture and pointing to a spot, "You have eaten nothing but tofu enchiladas and Cheetos for six days. Eat a vegetable." Leo looked scandalized.   
"How dare you? Fonzies are not Cheetos!"  
"Leo. Go eat a vegetable."

"Piper, you look fine. Next!" Will shouted out the door. Jason walked in.   
"Jason, you're usually so sensible. You do know that if you had swallowed anything, your organs would be sliced up, right?" Will asked, setting up the next scan.   
"Yeah." Jason admitted, "I know. But I figured if I came in here you and I could gossip about your and Nico's relationship."  
"Okay. Well, I'm dating a hot gremlin, neither of us are going to talk about our relationship, and you need to go now."  
"But you haven't even check-" "Go."

"Piper, I need to ask. Did you actually think you ate something or were you just trying to ruin my night?" Will asked, putting away the equipment. Piper shrugged. "I was high on smarties. I wasn't thinking straight."  
"I'm never thinking straight but I know not to spread a camp-wide panic. After Leo left, he told everyone how I insulted his dietary choices and they asked why. He told them, so then they wanted to get checked, too. I saw some messed up stuff, Piper." He turned to look back at her, but she was gone. 

Frustrated, Will turned back to the machine. "Aaaah! Sweet slippery salamanders!" He screamed. Nico was standing there, appearing the moment Will looked away.   
"Gods, Neeks. You can't just appear behind he like that." The taller boy said, trying to stop hyperventilating.  
"Sorry. But to be fair, I didn't know I was going to appear behind you."   
"Why are you here? Not that I'm complaining, I love when you're here, but did you need something?" Will asked, calm once again.   
"I need to be with my awesome boyfriend." Nico wrapped his arms around Will and kissed him. "Also, Leo's dressed as a sexy cat and I don't want to see that."


	76. Solangelo Squad

"Okay, everyone!" Percy shouted. It was his turn to lead the Solangelo Squad. They hadn't quite gotten Nico and Will together yet, but he felt they were close. "This week, our objective is the same as always; get Solangelo together." Cheering ensued. Tears of joy were shed at the name of the couple. Jason tore off his shirt and screamed "YYYYAAASSS!"   
"Annabeth has left me a plan. However, we are not going to use that plan. Here's the plan we're gonna do! Jason, the board." Jason wheeled in a chalk board with writing on it.   
"Okay! So! We know Nico has a Vitamin D deficiency."  
"He does?" Asked a voice from the back.  
"Yes. Please pay attention. Will is the child of the sun. The sun produces vitamin D. D stands for dick. Will has a dick. So, obviously, Nico writing on his blog that he takes vitamin D is code. Nico wants us to set him up with Will."  
Murmurs spread through the audience.  
"Um...are you sure?" A camper asked.  
"I'm positive. Here's what we're gonna do." He picked up a piece of chalk and wrote on the board.  
Step 1. Steal some inflatable penises   
Step 2. Hang them in Nico's cabin with Will's face taped on them.  
Step 3. Emerge from hiding spots  
Step 4. Sing 

"Um, Percy?" Piper asked.   
"Yes?"  
"What?"  
"I assume you're asking how we go about this. We need to make sure that Will is with Nico when this happens. Piper, that will be your job. It shouldn't be that hard, seeing as they're already always together. We need to find pictures of Will and print them out. Leo, this is your assignment." Leo punched the air in celebration. "Yes!" "Jason, you need to find a bunch of inflatable dicks! You live in the same cabin as Enrique, so it should be easy. And I will write the song."  
"Um," Jason interrupted, "Why are we doing a song?"  
"Stupid question, Grace. Now! Everyone, it's go time!" 

Jason snuck into his cabin. He didn't want to disturb Enrique. He just wanted to steal the inflatable dicks. Once he had all the dicks in a bag, he snuck back out and into the Hades cabin. "Time to start blowing dicks," he said as he started inflating the balloons.

"That's the last one." Leo turned off the printer, stuffed the photos into a toolbox, and ran. He planned on sprinting to the Hades cabin, but he had a small delay. He bumped into Nyssa. He dropped his toolbox, papers flying everywhere. "Bro," Nyssa asked, "Why do you have hundreds of pictures of Will Solace in your box? Is there something you want to tell me?"  
"Um. No. These are for a friend."  
"Sure."

"Piper, what are you doing?" Will asked her.  
"Nothing." She responded, when in fact she was not doing nothing. That's right. She was doing something. She was getting Will and Nico to the Hades cabin. That was all she could do, except hope the others did their parts.

They did their parts. "Why are you taking us to my cabin?" Nico asked. Every time someone lured him to his cabin, something bad happened. "And why do I need to be here for this?" Asked Will. Their questions weren't answered, because Piper opened the door and shoved Nico and Will in. The lights flicked on, there were penises everywhere. "What the Hades?" Nico shrieked. The penises had cutout pictures of Will on them and were handing from the ceiling, stuffed in corners, and sitting on Nico's bed.  Leo, Percy, Jason, Kayla, Austin, and some other campers popped up from hiding spots that weren't really hiding spots. "Good Evening, gentlemen." Percy said. "Will, Nico had all these penises with your face taped on them. All we did is take them out from under his bed." Nico looked at Will like "Please say you don't believe this" the same time Will looked at Nico like "Do they think I'm gonna believe that?"   
"Stop eye kissing, you two." Percy said before bursting into song. "Because you two are meant to be! Nico's got a collection of Will's dicks!" Will started laughing hysterically at this line. "Will loves all of Nico's quicks and Nico's ticks! Plus, they're the only gay guys at camp with even the slightest bit of chemistry! I don't know what rhymes with Chemistry! It's a mystery, like a talking duck. So please, stop wiggling around it and just f-" Percy was interrupted by a throat punch by a livid Nico Di Angelo. "Finish the song. I dare you." Percy did not finish the song.


	77. Soulmates

NPOV  
My necklace is half of the sun, just curved inward, like the moon. Most people's necklace doesn't match their other half's, but I have a feeling mine will. When your necklace has a curve in it, like a puzzle piece, it doesn't glow when it touches its match, but it fits. I think mine will fit with my future wife. I'm not attracted to women, but my parents say that when I find my soulmate, I'll love her. I guess I have to believe them.

WPOV  
I'm so excited! Most people meet their soulmates during the year they turn 17. I turned 17 a few months ago, but what if my soulmate is a different age then me? What if he's a year year older or younger? How old would I be when we met? Either we are the same age, or I'm slightly older. That'd be fine. Soulmates are never more than 2 years apart. When I turned seventeen, my mom told me all about soulmates. They could be of any gender, ethnicity, religion, or sex. As soon as your necklaces touch, they start glowing, she explained, but mine is a special kind that fits into my soulmate's necklace like a jigsaw puzzle. It's like a sun, but one end slants like a waning gibbous moon. It's made of gold toward the sunnier edge, but fades to black where it would connect. I find it absolutely beautiful. Some people don't like their necklace. My friend Annabeth has a glow-necklace the shape of a trident, and her boyfriend, Percy's is shaped like an owl. Those two are so cute together. 

*1 year time skip*

NPOV  
I'm finally moving to college, away from my parents. Thank god. I can't wait to not have to deal with their homophobic crap, their weird obsession with pomegranates, or anything else they can throw at me. They say that if I was gay, they would disown me, so I decided to not come out until college. Now I'm an orphaned 17 year old ready to face the world! While my parents hate me, my sisters don't. One of them is aromantic, and was born unbothered by a necklace. The other has already met her soulmate, a kind young man named Frank. He's nice, I guess. Not my type.

I unlock and open the door to my dorm. I was sharing it with a guy named Will. He was already kneeling on his bed, putting up pictures of his friends and family, along with some framed inspirational quotes. He heard me open the door and turned. He had glittery blond hair and pale blue eyes. "Hey! You must be Nico! I'm your roommate, Will, and I'm happy to meet you! What are you studying here?" He said this all fairly fast. It took me a moment to process everything.   
"Yep. I'm Nico. I'm studying literature. I'm going to be an author, you?"   
"I'm planning on being a pediatrician. I love kids and I'm good at medical stuff, so I think I'll enjoy it."   
"Great." I responded, dragging my roller suitcase behind me. I didn't bring much with me, only what was important. My clothes, my books, a few posters, and a few college essentials. I taped up the posters, shelved the books, and hung the shirts.   
"Oh, cool. You like Alice Isn't Dead? So do I. I love how scary it is, but especially the LGBTQ+ representation. I love seeing other gay people in the media." Will smiled at me.   
"Me too," I responded, "I love being represented."   
"You're gay too?"  
"I sure am." I doubt he'll have a problem with it. He said 'other gay people' so he's not one to judge. He's pretty cute. I wonder if he's my soulmate.

WPOV  
When Nico walked into our dorm, I was pretty sure we were destined to be together. If we aren't, I will climb on to the roof of the cafe and shout "FUCK FATE!" before kissing Nico. I have to figure out how to match our necklaces, to see if I have to do the 'fuck fate' thing or if we're soulmates. Both are good options. He obviously likes me. I saw the way he blushed when I smiled at him. Or maybe he's just shy and I'm reading into this. Only one way to find out. I'll have to see if the necklaces match. 

It's been about a month when I finally work up the courage to walk up and ask him. I'm usually so smooth. I say what I'm thinking, but for some reason it's harder with Nico. I guess I'm worried about what he'll think.   
"Hey, Nico?" I ask timidly. He looks to me with a confused expression on his face.   
"Yeah? What's wrong? You seem...... off."  
Okay. Okay. Deep breaths. "Could we see if our necklaces fit? If you don't want to, that's fine. I doubt you want to. Let's stay friends! Actually, haha, April fools! Damn it, it's October. Um, I'm so sorry. How abou—"   
"How about you shut up," Okay then. This isn't going well. "And we can see if they fit." He keeps his necklace under his shirt, so I've never seen it before, but it's gorgeous. Even better, it fits into mine like a puzzle piece. He looks up at me, shocked. I hug him, like I did when we were friends, but it's different now. He pulls me into a kiss. I've never kissed anyone before Nico, so I'm not sure what to do, but he seems to enjoy it. 

NPOV  
Oh my god! Will is my soulmate! I can't believe it! I can't wait to tell Hazel, she'll be so happy for me. Heck, I'm so happy for me. My soulmate is WILL SOLACE! The most beautiful boy in the world. All of this is on my mind when I fall asleep next to him. "I'm so happy we're soulmates. Now I don't have to yell at the universe." Will whispered. "What?" "Oh, um, I'll explain later."


	78. Tears

Nico looked over at his boyfriend and smiled. Will was staring at the sky, taking in the stars.  
"The stars are beautiful tonight." Nico said. "And you know what else is beautiful?"  
Will blushed, "What?"  
"The knowledge that one day we will all finally embrace death. I can't wait."  
Will stopped blushing. The smile fell from his face. "You know what?" Will said, standing up, "Maybe if you work a little harder, you'll reach death sooner. What fun that will be for you."   
"Wait, Will–"  
"Goodbye, Nico. I'm going back to my cabin." 

Nico watched Will walk away. He didn't try to follow him. Why did he have to be so awkward? Why couldn't he have just acted like a normal person? Said a normal thing? 

Nico stood outside for a moment. Tears began to fall from his face. He turned around and walked inside, locking the door and plopping himself on his bed. 

Nico barely slept that night. He kept replaying what had happened. Nico didn't go to breakfast. He wasn't hungry. Usually he would go just to see Will, but today... today that wasn't an option. Nico wondered if it would ever be an option again.


	79. Telling Frank, Piper, and Subsequently Jason by Fallout Boy

NPOV  
"Frank, Hazel! I'm so glad you could visit!" After chatting with them for a few minutes, I asked, "Do you guys want to meet my boyfriend, Will?"  
Frank looks confused. "Boyfriend? I thought you were single. And straight. I'm sorry for assuming. But good for you!" He looks genuinely happy for me. I introduce them to Will. He smiled at my sister anxiously.   
"Nico, now we both have hot archer boyfriends!" She squeals.   
"Yep." I respond.  
"You think I'm hot?" Will teases me.  
"Obviously." I say rolling my eyes. "Why would I date you if I wasn't attracted to you?" 

Jason's head pops out from a nearby bush,  
"I hear wedding bells." He says in a singsong voice. I consider telling him to leave, but I don't.   
"Jason, you know Will? We're dating."   
Jason looks at me like I'm the dumbest creature on the planet. "Duh. I know. I hid in your closet and watched you guys make out." "What the actual Hades?! You had no right to do that! Oh. My. Gods. What the fu—"Right, Frank is an innocent boy who dislikes curses, sorry, Frank. "WHAT THE HECK JASON? I'm calling Reyna. She will end you." Jason looks up at me, smirking. "Reyna is busy at Camp Jupiter. Only one praetor can be gone at a time, and Frank's here." He says, gesturing to Frank. Frank looks like he'd rather be anywhere else. "I'd be happy to not be here, though. I'll leave." He turns into a bird and flies away. Jason seems upset that he can't chase him, and I decide not to remind Jason that he can fly.

The next day I'm at sword practice with Piper when I tell her.  
"Oh my Gods." I say. "That is so gay."  
"Gay isn't an insult, Nico."  
"I know. I'm not using it as one."   
"Well, what's gay?" Piper asks.  
"Me."  
"You're gay?"   
"Yeah."  
"Cool. Do you have a boyfriend?"  
"Yep."  
"Who is he?"  
"Will Solace."  
She wolf whistles. "Nice."


	80. Texts

⚠️Smut ⚠️   
Everyone is 18+ in this fic  
Jason POV  
"Okay. I'm in." I said as I took Will's phone. It was almost too easy. His phone (on airplane mode, so the monsters can't sense it) was just sitting in the back pocket of his cutoff shorts, so I took it. Now the Solangelo Squad was gathered in my cold, drafty cabin, sitting just out of view of Statue-Zeus, looking through Nico and Will's texts. The Solangelo Squad is composed of Leo, Piper, Percy, and me. Sometimes Hazel and Annabeth join. Every once and a while Reyna, but not often, as she has a camp to run. Back to the point, we were going through Will's texts. The passcode was easy; 1212.

Deathboi: Hey sunshine  
Will: Hey love ❤️ what's up?

Oh my gods! Nico calls Will sunshine! Perfect blackmail material!

Deathboi: I'm having a tough day and was wondering if you could come over and cuddle with me tonight?  
Will:ofc  
Will: I'd love to

"Hmmmmmmmmm.........." I asked aloud. "What did Nico mean by 'cuddle?'"  
Hazel stared at me confusedly, "Cuddle? Is that code for something?"  
I, not wanting to destroy Hazel's innocent mind, said no, and kept reading the texts to the group.

Will: I love you, Neeks.  
Deathboi: I love you too🖤  
Will: You and your black hearts  
Deathboi: You got a problem with them?  
Will: Not at all. I think they're cute  
Will: Like a certain son of Hades I know.  
Deathboi: I can not describe how much I want you to push me up against the wall and kiss me.  
Wil: Is that all you want me to do? ;)  
Deathboi: Not at all. You can do whatever you want to me.

Woah. That's a shock. Because first, Nico's a bottom, and second, he's surprisingly kinky for a 1930's guy. As I read the last few lines, Annabeth dragged Hazel away as Hazel yelled at her brother. Annabeth tried to explain to her that Nico could not hear her, which I'm pretty sure Hazel already knew, and that if Nico found out we had read his and Will's texts, he'd kill us all. Thank the gods Reyna wasn't here. She'd beat up 'the scum that thinks he has the right to deflower our precious Disney prince.' Her words, not mine. When we ask her about it, she denies she ever said it, but she did (loudly, in the middle of the New Rome cafe.)

Will: Can I describe exactly what I'm going to do to you tonight?  
Deathboi: I'd love that.  
Will: I'll push you up against the wall, just like you wanted, but instead of kissing your face the whole time, I think I'll pay some attention to your neck as well.  
Deathboi: Keep going...  
Will: I'll slowly but roughly take off your shirt, kissing you the whole time, our lips separating only when I pull the shirt over your head.   
You: I'll lift you away from the wall, my hands on your ass, and carry you to your bed. I'll leave you lying there as I undress myself before ordering you to do the same. You'll do so, and I'll attack you again. You'll look to me with lust in your eyes and moan. Even though your cabin is sound proof, I'll grab a gag to silence you.  
Deathboi: You have a gag? Wtf?   
You: Don't kinkshame me. You're the one sexting your boyfriend  
Deathboi: Also, silence me? Am I gonna be murdered?  
Will: I'm trying to be sexy, babe.  
Deathboi: Right, sorry. Go ahead.  
Will: How about I stop texting you and come to your cabin and put these words to the rest? My shift is done? 

There was no response. Presumably, they had stopped texting because Will had gone to Nico's cabin.   
"When were these sent?" Piper asked. She may deny being an Aphrodite camper, but there's no denying her love for this particular couple. Sometimes I think she loves their relationship more than she loves ours. But this isn't about that.   
"Yesterday." Leo whispered. He seemed flustered. When Leo, of all people is flustered, you know something is really....weird, to say the least. "Will said he'd pay attention to Nico's neck. Next time we see him, let's check for marks." We all agreed.  
Will's phone buzzed. The message read:   
Lou Ellen🐽: Hey! This is Will Solace, texting from my friend's phone. I think I must've lost mine. If you're reading this, could you please bring it to the Apollo cabin or infirmary? I'd really appreciate it, thanks.  
"He knows it's missing. Now the clock is ticking." Piper said. So we put it on the counter in the infirmary, out of fear he would discover us with it. Before we left, Leo sprawled a note with his non-dominant hand   
'I read you+nico's texts. Change your passcode.'


	81. Thigh Highs and Garters

A slightly smutty story  
"Hey, Will?" Nico asked. Will stopped putting away dishes and looked down at him. Not look down in a rude way, but Will was just so much taller than his boyfriend. It could be a challenge, but Will loved how Nico was pocket sized. If you had a really big pocket, which Will didn't.   
"Yeah?" He asked.  
"I love you." Nico said, standing on his tiptoes to kiss the taller man's cheek.   
"I love you, too, babe."  
"I, um, I got you something. I think you'll like it."  
"Ooooh." Will asked excitedly. "What is it?"  
"Well," Nico bit his lip. "It's, uh, well, yeah. You'll see." He turned around and put away their silverware, leaving Will confused. Why didn't Nico want to tell him. Nico seemed..... embarrassed? Was that the word? Why would Nico be embarrassed? He and Will had been together for years, and he knew he could tell Will anything. So why did he seem embarrassed? 

"Will? Would you come in here?" Nico called out nervously. He was terrified. While he knew Will wouldn't react poorly, he was still embarrassed. Will was usually the one to initiate these kinds of things, not the other way around. But Nico knew Will had a lingerie kink, so here he was. Standing awkwardly in their bedroom, wearing high thighs and garters that were originally meant for women. The cashier gave him such a dirty look when he bought them. 

Will walked in and blushed. Nico was standing there, arms folded across his chest, smiling nervously and wearing thigh highs and garters. Oh gods, he was beautiful. "What's happening here?" Will asked seductively. Nico blushed even deeper (if that was possible) and took his hands off his exposed chest to hide his face. Will stepped toward him and took his hands, removing them from his face looking into the other one's eyes.  
"Nico. Do you want this?" He asked. "I don't want to pressure you into anything."  
"Will, if I didn't want this, would I be wearing this humiliating outfit?"  
"I think it's sexy. I want to press you up against a wall." Will whispered. Nico raised an eyebrow. "Do it." 

 

Hazel did not expect this to happen. She figured that Nico was a smol bean, cuddling gently with his boyfriend once a week before going to pray. She supposed that was naive, but whatever. She certainly didn't think they would...... do stuff....... without locking their door. Okay, to be fair, they did lock the door, but Hazel picked it. She should have stopped when she heard moaning and whimpering, but she figured it was nothing. Now she knows what Nico looks like in lingerie that doesn't cover much, and that will haunt her forever.

"Nico, hey." Hazel said through Iris Message. "Hey, Hazel, Reyna. How are you?" He acted so casual. He must not have known what Hazel had seen. That made sense, seeing as how she tiptoed out until she was in her car and only then did she scream. Then she raced home and told Reyna.  
"We're doing fine." Hazel said. She had gone over this in her head multiple times. She would start casually, before dropping a truth bomb. "So.... what have you and Will been up to lately." Nico shrugged. "Nothing much."   
Reyna smirked. "Nothing?" Nico rolled his eyes. "No, Reyna. Nothing."  
"Not even...." Hazel paused suggestively, "playing dress up?"  
Nico looked confused. "What?"  
Reyna sighed. "Hazel came to visit you yesterday." She watched the realization don on him. His face turned pink as he swiped his hand through the IM.


	82. Toxic

"Because I don't fucking care about your dead sister!" 

Words sting. 

Nico had never understood the expression before. Bees sting. But unlike bees, words did not sting. However, in this moment, he realized the meaning behind metaphor that had for so long confused him. His boyfriend's words.... they stung. He couldn't believe Brandon would say that. He'd always been so supportive of Nico. Especially today, the anniversary of Bianca's death. "B-babe?" Nico asked through tears that had been there even before Brandon's hurtful words.   
"No." Brandon said angrily. "I'm not doing this again. You and I, we're not meant to be together."  
"I- we could make it work." Nico begged. "I'll stop being sad. I promise, I just need a moment. I'll get better at not bothering you when you're drunk. It can't be that hard, I mean, your drunk self is similar to your sober self, but I'll find a way. I'll look, and I'll search, and I'll never stop searching because I love you. Please don't leave me. I'll do anything."  
"Then stop crying about your dead bitch of a sister. She's gone! She's not coming back, and if you don't accept that, I'm leaving."   
"Bianca isn't— wasn't..." Nico said, all sadness replaced with anger. "Fine. I'll go." Nico got up and grabbed his bag, already packed from their last fight, and walked out the door. He walked down the stairs of Brandon's apartment and down the street. He kept walking until he could no longer recognize his surroundings. Then he recognized a Rite-Aid, and thought he had gone in a circle. The he realized every Rite-Aid looked the same, and that this particular Rite-Aid was a different Rite-Aid all together. 

Nico walked past the Rite-Aid. He checked his phone for the time and saw that it was starting to get late. If he wanted to find somewhere to sleep that wasn't a bus stop, he had to start looking. 

Unfortunately, there weren't many hotels in the area. The two that were near him were way too expensive. Who would pay that much for a hotel room? After zero consideration, Nico decided to just walk along until he found a nice 24 hour coffee shop and spend the night there, sipping cappuccinos and staring aimlessly at his computer screen. Fun night.

It took him about another hour to find a Starbucks. This surprised him, as he didn't think anyone was ever more than fifteen minutes from a Starbucks at any given moment. 

Nico walked in and sat at one of the many empty tables. He looked around. Almost no one was there. It said 24 hours, right?   
"Oh!" A man's head shot up from behind the counter. "Hi. What can I get you?"   
Nico walked up to the counter and ordered. "I'll have a vanilla cappuccino please," He read the barista's name tag. "Will."  
"Coming right up. Vanilla cappuccino!" Will yelled before turning around and making it himself. Nico didn't understand why he yelled it, since there were no other baristas, but Nico  had had a long day. At this point, all he could do was sip his coffee and laugh at the cute barista's antics. 

 

At one point in the night, said barista looked around the coffee shop, saw the very few customers, and decided the beverage counter would be fine without him. He walked over to the table where Nico was sitting.  
"Hi." He said, making Nico's eyes jump from his computer screen in surprise.   
"Sorry, Nico. Didn't mean to startle you."  
Nico frowned. "How do you know my name?" "You told me when you got your first cappuccino."  
Nico nodded. "Ah. Why are you over here, again?"   
Will once again looked around the building. "I thought you looked lonely. Do you want me not to be here?"  
"No!" Nico all but shouted. "I mean, yes. I mean I'd love to hang out with you."   
"Great!" Will smiled. 

Nico told Will about Brandon and Bianca. Will told Nico about his cat, Edmund, who was allergic to cheese. They talked about what they did in their free time. But they mostly spoke about the first thing.  
"Okay, so, he really said that?" Will asked, chewing a cookie he had stolen from the display case.   
"Yeah." Nico replied, not approving of Will's thievery. "Today's the- well, it's past midnight, so technically yesterday. Yesterday was the anniversary of Bianca's death. I usually get really sad, stress-eat a tub of ice cream, and cry on my ex-boyfriend's floor. But he broke up with me because I was sad too much. I was willing to be less sad, or to pretend to be, but he still broke up with me. Then he called my sister a bitch."   
Will just sat there for a moment before realizing he was worrying Nico by not responding. "He sounds terrible. I'm so sorry. That... that just really sucks. But you know what Great-Grandma Solace always said? When life throws you a curveball, make lemonade. She wasn't the brightest, but the sentiment remains."  
"She sounds nice. A lot like her great grandson."  
Will smiled. "Thanks! I think you're nice, too."

Nico didn't even notice it at first. He was too busy talking to Will to hear the text come in. He had never gotten over a break up so quickly. Having Will there helped. Nico liked him, but it didn't feel like a rebound. It was as if he had met Will and immediately gotten over Brandon. But Nico didn't come here to get another boyfriend.   
"Oh, Neeks, looks like you got a message." Will said.  
"Neeks?" Nico asked, eyebrows raised in a taunting manner.  
"Just check your messages." Will shoved his face in his hands to hide his blush as Nico checked his phone.

Brandon: Nico, babe. I'm sorry about what I said.  
Brandon: I didn't mean it.  
Brandon: In the old days, Picasso ate yellow paint. People said he was crazy. That it was toxic. And it was. He ate it because it made him happy, but also because it would kill him. You're a terrible, toxic person. But I still like you. Because, Nico, you are my yellow paint.

Nico looked up in disbelief. He thought for a moment. Will could be trusted. "Oh my god. Will, look at this." He handed Will the phone and watched as his face reacted to the messages. Will looked up. "First I'd like to say that this guy seems like a dick. Second, way to romanticize depression. Third, you're toxic? Does this guy actually believe what he's saying?" Nico smiled despite the situation. Will actually cared.  
"Okay. Blocked his number." Nico said, taking back his phone. "But there's one more problem."   
"What's the problem?"  
"I don't have his number anymore... but I also don't have yours."  
"Oh! Well, I can fix that."

Maybe Nico didn't come here to get another, kinder, boyfriend. But he supposed he hadn't planned on coming here at all. And maybe falling in love with someone you'd just met wasn't the worst thing in the world.


	83. Transgender and Gay! What a Bargain!

TW: transphobic speech  
WPOV  
"I hate you." Nico sneered at me. "You disgusting girl."   
His words stung. "Well, um, I'm a boy, I'm just a transgender boy. It's only an adjective, like tall or blond or freckled or nervous or...." I didn't get to finish my sentence, as he cut me off.   
"Or worthless. I thought I loved you. I guess I was wrong. I'm going to tell everyone, and everyone will hate you. Bye, girl." And he left the cabin. 

"Will, wake up!!!" Adam, half-brother, was shaking me. "It's time to take everyone to breakfast." I got up and dressed before taking them to the dining pavilion. I saw Nico sitting at the big three table with Jason. He looked at me and smiled, but I was still upset about the dream I had, so I looked away. I knew it wasn't fair, Nico didn't actually say those things. When my siblings ate breakfast, I thought about my dream. How I woke up and thought 'it was all a dream.' Ugh. How cliche. And I know cliche. My father is Apollo, god of cliches. Also the sun and healing and stuff, but right now I'm focusing on the cliches. 

I was so immersed in the magical (note the sarcasm) world of cliches, I didn't notice Nico walking over to me until he kissed me, snapping me back into reality. "Hey Sunshine. Do you want to come over to my cabin later?" He ignored my siblings' giggling and slid onto the bench next to me. "Hazel gave me some Mythomagic cards and I was wondering if you wanted to sort through them with me." Oh my gods he's cute. "Um... Yeah! Of course! And I have something to tell you! Later. At your cabin." His smile fell. "Sure. See you then." And he walked back to Jason, who was making weird cow sounds. Gods, Jason. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~Time Skip~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We were in Nico's cabin, sitting on the floor with a small pile of mythomagic cards in between us. Nico grinned smugly and put down a hydra card. "Who's the anemic loser now?" When I didn't laugh at the joke, he grew concerned. "Will, what's going on? You've been acting really weird." I guess I'd been acting weird. I got disarmed at sword practice, dipped a French fry in my lemonade at lunch, and didn't make a single good shot in archery.   
"Well, um, I, uh, you see, I..."   
"Will. I just want to know what's going on. I promise I won't be mad." But I knew he would be. He was raised in the 20's for god's sakes! But I can't keep this to myself forever. "I'm transgender." He looks at me strangely. "Is that it? Not to invalidate your concerns, but is that all you're worried about? I know that already."   
I felt mixed feelings. I was happy that Nico accepted me but I was confused that he knew.   
"How?"   
"How did I know? You never let anyone see you without a shirt and you have a miniature trans pride flag in your healer bag. "  
This was all true. "And," he added, "I felt your binder through your shirt when we were making out on my bed. It looks like you need cuddles. Come here." So we cuddled for a few hours before he fell asleep.


	84. Transgender and Gay! What a Bargain! Part Two

NPOV  
No. No. No. This can not be happening. No. These are my thoughts that swim through my head as I see the blood in my underwear. I get a pad. I absolutely hate this. Most boys don't get periods. I recently started taking medication so I wouldn't have to deal with this. The doctor (not Will, for once) said there was only a 90% chance of it working, but I was desperate. Plus, 90% is a lot. Maybe I wouldn't be in the ten percent of losers for once. But nope. I should've known, I've never been a lucky person. I decide to text Will. 

Nico: Hey  
Will: Hey, love. What's up?  
Nico: Could you come over to my cabin later today? If it's not too much trouble.  
Will: Of course! I love hanging out with you. It's never too much trouble. Is something wrong?  
Nico: Yeah. I'll tell you later.  
Will: Okay. Text me if you need me. I love you  
Nico: love you too

Will doesn't know I'm trans. I know he's trans, so I know he'll take it well, but it's a big deal. He'll still love me. I still loved him after he came out. If anything, I loved him more for trusting me with that. I'm sure it'll be fine. But What if it isn't? 

Will enters my cabin and hugs me. "Hi, Neeks. How are you doing?" I take a deep breath.  
"Not well. I have something important to tell you. Will you sit down with me?" He sits next to me on my bed. He looks extremely nervous, like he thinks I'm going to break up with him. "Will... I'm transgender, too. I'm taking meds to stop my period but they aren't working well. I need your support." He makes a confused face. "Of course. I thought you were going to break up me, and I was really sad. I'll support you no matter what. You're my everything. I love you so much." He smiles, "Plus! Now we can be transgender boyfriends! You and me, two trans guys, who go on adventures. Until-plot twist- they fall in love."  
I kiss him. "You're such a dork."  
"Yeah, but I'm your dork."  
I love him so much.


	85. Transgender and Gay! What a Bargain! Part Three

NPOV  
3rd time in the infirmary this year and it's only March. They should give out punch cards like, 10 hospital visits and you get 50% off one (1) sugar free jello (now made with real fruit juice and patients' tears.) I can't stand being here. It's so bright and so loud. Will's not even here today, he's doing cabin visits. It absolutely sucks. Kayla walks over to see how I'm doing, "How ya doing, Nico?" "I'm doing fine." LIES. I'm not doing well, my throat hurts and my stomach hurts, and my head is killing me. I'm not supposed to wear my binder when I'm this sick, but like I said, Will's not here. Kayla doesn't know I'm transgender, so she won't suspect I have a binder on. She'll just assume my chest is naturally flat-ish. I don't know how (almost) no one knows. My face is squishy, my hips are wide, I'm short, and I have a pretty feminine voice. Not that I'm complaining about  them not noticing. But I feel like I'm dying. 

"I know you're lying, Nico." Kayla's voice snaps me back into reality.  
"About what, exactly?"  
"You don't fell well and I know it. Take your meds!"  
I don't take the meds.  
"Well then why did you even ask, Kayla?"  
She looks to me and smirks, "To see if you're a liar."  
"You already know I'm a liar. What's your game."  
"If you don't start giving me real answers, I'll will about how you're not being very helpful."  
"Ugh. Fine. What?"  
"I heard a rumor you were a girl," "What?"  
"And I wanted to see if you needed help. I'm a trans girl, too. I understand." Oh. She thinks I'm mtf. That's good, I guess. I smile at her, "Gods, Kayla, I really appreciate it, however, I'm good. Don't tell anyone, but I'm ftm. Not mtf."  
She smiles at me, "Oh! Good for you! So's Will!" A look of realization spreads across her face. "Shit. I wasn't supposed to say that. If you tell anyone," she got very close to my face, "I will kill you." Many thoughts flash through my head.  
1\. She thinks she has the ability to kill me?  
2\. I know Will's transgender. It tore him apart to tell me. The next week I told him I was, too, and he got so excited! It was adorable, his face lit up and his eyes got wide and he started talking about how much he loved me and how he would love me no matter what obviously and...... Sorry, I got off topic.  
3\. Give me some personal space, girl!  
I said all of this (minus the jabber about Will,) and she nodded.  
"Great."  
I start to get up. "Nope!" Kayla pushes me back on to the hospital bed. "You will stay here until you're healed! Doctor's orders! Oh gods I sound like will."  
"It's fine, I'll stay. For now, at least."  
She peers at me gratefully. "Now take your medication, idiot!"


	86. Transgender and Gay! What a Bargain! Part Four

NPOV  
"What does your dad think?" Will asked.   
"My dad's fine with it. He's pretty supportive. When I told his he was all 'Son. We are Greek. I could not care any less about your gender or sexual orientation. So that's good. How about your dad?"   
"My dad is a pansexual genderfluid Greek god who is literally flaming. He was really proud. He told me some really inappropriate things though. I now know the ten best sex positions of the sixteen hundreds." I look at him in surprise. "Will, what?" He grinned at me sheepishly, "It was terrible. He was like 'Son, this is where the anal beads come in— that's when I ran out of the room. I don't want to have to think about my father's sex life." Will looked really embarrassed. "Honestly," He said. "I probably would have prefer him saying 'you are no son of mine.' Because that's what my mom said, well, she said no daughter of mine, but she's an asshole. Anyway, getting back on topic, does Chiron know? I came to camp when I was very young, so I didn't really 'pass' yet. How about you?"  
I shrugged. "I guess. I have to use female armor because of how I'm small, but no one can tell. They look almost identical, Chiron doesn't care about gender roles. I asked which bathroom I could use. He said whichever I felt comfortable with, so that was really nice. Most people think I'm cis. I don't know how. My binder doesn't flatten by boobs all the way, my voice is high, my hips are wide, I'm short. But it's nice to pass nonetheless." I say. Will stands up. "I know what must be done. Poseidon once had a transgender lover, correct? And he gave him a masculine body and armor skin!" He turned to me, grinning. "What are you getting at?" I ask. He responds, "Time to get frisky with Percy's dad!" I can't believe I'm in love with this boy.


	87. Trans Sparring

Will's POV  
Slash. Swipe. Jab. Honestly, I just don't the know sparring lingo. I just know that my boyfriend is absolutely rocking in the arena. I assume. I don't really know who's winning, because, like I said, I don't know anything about non-medical training. I mean, before I knew about my parentage (Apollo is one of the more family oriented gods, and he still took about a year to claim me), I would try to sword fight and stuff, but my talents really lie in healing. 

I'm so distracted by my thoughts that I don't notice until it's too late. Nico's been stabbed in the shoulder and pushed to the ground. He's not moving. I run down to him frantically, pushing people out of the way. I don't even know the name of the person who he was fighting. But that doesn't matter now. I put my hand on his wrist and I don't feel a pulse. His pulse is usually hard to find, but this feels different. I scoop him up bridal style and run to the infirmary. I can't help him without the lifesaving stuff I keep there.

His pulse is strong again. Thank the gods. All it took was some unicorn draught and he's pretty much back to normal. I mean, he's still unconscious and I can sense some broken bones, but he's alive. 

I hate invading his privacy, I really do. But in order to heal him, I have to touch the skin above the broken bone. I take off his shirt and see a binder, which I did not expect. So I begrudgingly take off his binder and put my hand on his chest to heal his ribs. Oh, gods, I feel awful. I had to do it to heal him, and I know he'd rather have me touch him than Kayla. 

The second his ribs are healed, I put his shirt back on. Also a hoodie because you can't wear a binder with fragile ribs and hoodies are soft. 

Nico's POV  
I wake up in the infirmary. I'm wearing a hoodie that smells like Will, and— oh gods. I'm not wearing my binder. It's sitting on the table next to me. He knows. Oh, gods, no. I can't deal with this right now. My ribs hurt and my mouth is super dry. I just curl into a ball and go back to sleep. 

I dream about what happened earlier today. I was fighting that Ares kid when I saw Will staring at me. He was so cute and it distracted me just long enough to get stabbed. Well, that explains my shoulder pain. Then they pushed me onto the ground and stepped on me. I imagine Chiron's gonna be upset with them.

"Hey, Nico." Will's southern accent wakes me up. It takes me a moment to open my eyes. When they're open, I see him sitting next to me, holding a glass of water to my mouth. I take the glass from him and drink the entire thing. Then I just look at him, waiting for what he's going to say.   
"I love you." He says, taking the empty glass. "I'd hug you, but your ribs were broken earlier and I'd still rather not risk it." He pauses and I take the chance to speak. Don't get me wrong, I'd much rather never talk about it, but I know that's not an option. If I can't avoid something, I'd rather just get it over with.   
"Speaking of my ribs, and, um, chest," I look to my boyfriend, searching every inch of his face for a reaction. I find no reaction, so I continue. "I'm sorry I lied." I say. This gets a reaction out of him. "Nico, stop." He says. "You don't need to apologize. You weren't ready for me to know. I feel awful about how I found out. I mean, I had to, but I still feel bad."  
"You aren't mad?" I ask.  
"What?" Will looks confused. "No, of course not. I'm sad that you felt like you had to hide this from me, but I get it. I love you. Just know that you can trust me with anything." He smiles and takes my hand.   
"I love you, too."


	88. Truth or Dare

"C'mon, Neeks, it'll be fun!"  
"No."  
"I'm only here for a weekend, please?"  
Nico sighed, "Fine."  
Hazel was trying to force Nico to play truth or dare with some of their friends. She knew the rest of the seven would be there, plus Will Solace and Kayla from the Apollo cabin. 

Nico walked into the Poseidon cabin, where they were going to play. He saw the others sitting in a circle.  
"Sorry we're late. Nico didn't want to come." Hazel said, interrupting their conversation.  
"No problem, we're glad you're here." Jason replied.  
"Who's first?" Percy asked, looking around excitedly.  
"I vote Piper!"  
"Shut up, Leo!"  
"You're no fun."  
Jason cut in, "Since it's Percy's cabin, he should go first."

"Uhhhh... Frank! Truth or dare?"  
"Me? Um, truth."  
"What was the most embarrassing thing that happened to you on the Argo II?"  
"Probably when I had to turn into an iguana to get out of those Chinese handcuffs. Jason! Truth or dare?"  
"Dare."  
"I dare you to fly onto the top of the Hera cabin and back!"  
Jason glared nervously and left.

It had been about 10 minutes, and Jason hadn't returned.  
"You should've picked something faster for him to do, Frank." Kayla complained.  
"Sorry. I was flustered."  
Jason burst through the door.  
"I almost didn't make it back!"  
Jason looked out of breath. He was leaning over, drenched in sweat.  
"You only went over a few cabins. What took you so long?" Leo complained.  
"Chiron saw me, and gave me a lecture about how head councilors should behave better. He's also making me wash dishes tomorrow." Jason sat back down next to Percy, who looked apologetic.  
"Sorry, man."

"Anyway, it's my turn. Nico, you've been awfully quiet. Truth or dare?"  
Nico didn't answer.  
"Nico?"  
Nico took a earbud out.   
"Yes?"  
Hazel looked exasperated.   
"You mean you weren't even paying attention?"  
"I didn't know I had to pay attention. You just asked me to be here."  
"Nico..."  
"Fine. Dare."  
Jason smiled mischievously.   
" I dare you to kiss the person in this room you like." He looked at Percy, waiting for Nico to walk over to him, when Nico stood up. He walked over to Will and kissed him, blushing furiously. Will kissed him back.  
Percy looked shocked.  
"So that's your type."  
Annabeth slapped him playfully.  
Nico glared at Percy.   
"So...Percy...truth or dare?"


	89. A Tumblr Story

Everyone is 18+  
Nico_Di_Angelo: I JUST FOUND MY CRUSH ON A GAY PORN SITE OH MY SWEET POSEIDON   
Jason_dadfriend: why were you on a gay porn website?   
Nico_Di_Angelo: for oatmeal recipes why the fuck do you think?  
Jason_dadfriend: Who was it?  
Nico_Di_Angelo: Yeah, I'm going to tell you that.   
Jason_dadfriend: I'm just going to watch every gay porn and stop when I see someone I know.  
Nico_Di_Angelo: Jason, wtf  
Jason_dadfriend: Oh, so it's fine for you to watch gay porn under your account but when I hack into your computer it's 'wrong' ????  
Nico_Di_Angelo: did you hack into my computer?  
Jason_dadfriend: maybe....  
Nico_Di_Angelo: I will destroy you.

Will_sunshine: my boyfriend who isn't really my boyfriend just found me on a gay porn site.  
ImPiperImFifteenandIAlreadyHateYou: You do porn?  
Will_sunshine: I'm studying to be a doctor and med school ain't cheap, honey.  
ImPiperImFifteenandIAlreadyHateYou: WTF, Will?  
Will_sunshine: Oh gods, Piper??!??!!! I didn't know that was you!!!!!!!!! I thought you were an internet stranger Asdfghjklzxcvbbm   
ImPiperImFifteenandIAlreadyHateYou: .......


	90. Trans Support

NPOV  
"Ugh." I complained, "Do we have to?  
"Yes" Hazel responded. She said it was good to get out there and socialize. I told her I had enough friends already. She raised an eyebrow at me, judging silently but not at all subtly. After lot of force, bribery, convincing, and judgment, we left. 

"We're going to go around and each of us will say a special fact about ourselves. Who wants to start?" No one wanted to start. The good news is that I wasn't picked first. That bad news is, I went second. I'll get to that later. The person to the left of me described with great detail some medical procedures.  
"They grabbed my boob and smashed it! Smashed it right down flat! And that was my first mammogram." The woman finished. I felt very out of place. I assumed the groups would be based on age or gender identity, but it was based on whether or not you were trans. I guess that made sense, but most of the people in my group were 70 something year old MtF women. They were eagerly talking about their personal experiences. I really wanted to leave.  
I wasn't even sitting in the same room as Hazel, due to the fact that she was cis. The older lady sat next to me, and when I told her I was saving it for someone (I wasn't, she just smelled really weird. That smell most old ladies have, a mix of lavender and other stuff. Hazel used to smell like that, when I first got her out of the underworld. Then she spent like, 2 hours in the living world and took a shower. ) The old woman said I was a very rude young man. I tried to move next to a nice smelling person, but every other seat was taken. So I was stuck between someone who thought I was rude and a ridiculously cute boy. There were a few problems in this situation. The first was the smelly lady. I'm not trying to be rude, honestly. But she smelled really gross. Second problem; the boy next to me. He was cute, but he was probably not into me.  Maybe he wanted a partner who identified as female. This was a group for transgender people, not all LGBT people. Even if he was gay, he wouldn't be into me. Just from looking at him, I could tell we were polar opposites. I was creepy. I was short. I dressed in black and stood in corners so to not draw attention to myself.   
He was charming. He was tall. He could never blend in, as if he was born to stand out in the most beautiful way. His name tag read 'Will Solace, He/Him.' His hair was blond and curly, like Arby's fries. Dang. I was hungry. 

"You. Young man, say a special fact about yourself." I was busy daydreaming. I barely heard the question. I panicked and said something really embarrassing.   
"Once I deep throated a fruit roll up." I felt my face go red as I put it in my hands. Why would I say that? I mean, it's true. Percy dared me to when he found out I was gay. He was really impressed. He's fun. Is fun the right word? Or something more along the lines of 'ridiculous' 'weird' or 'gross.' That sounds more accurate.

"Nice." Will nodded next to me. "Once I deep throated an entire banana. I don't even like bananas. I was just proving a point." Will was told to either quiet down or leave.   
"What point?" I asked, interrupting the leader.  
"That I want a boyfriend."  
"Does that boyfriend have to have a dick?"  
He laughed. "No. Obviously not. I don't have a dick, it would be rude to discriminate."  
"Can I be your boyfriend?" Well. I can't take it back now. He seemed like he was about to respond, but someone started telling their own special facts.  
Most of the people who went after us were talking about their first mammograms. My chair neighbor was a trend setter, apparently. Not Will, the old lady. Will didn't talk about his first mammogram. 

"Did you mean what you said?" We were on the sidewalk outside the building. Will had power-walked until he was next to me.   
"Um." I responded. I'm eloquent like that. It's a gift. "Yeah. If you want. I mean, you're really cute and you seem sweet and.....yeah." I looked up to him hopefully. I was short. He smiled. It was the most beautiful smile in the world. "I'd love to. Hey, it's still fairly early, do you wanna do something? Something date-ey? I'm new at this."   
"How about we eat fries in the graveyard?"   
He nodded in agreement. He seemed absolutely perfect. Just like French fries.


	91. Uncle Jason

"Jason! No!" I yelled as if scolding a dog.  
"Ugh, Nico. I'm serious. Just give him a chance." Jason replied, groaning a plopping his head onto the kitchen counter with a soft 'thump.'   
Every single day, Jason makes fun of my age. I'm only, what, two years younger then him? If that. And every day, he's like "LOL, bro, I need to set you up with my nephew. YOLO AAAYY." 

Okay, maybe I'm exaggerating a little. But it's true that he keeps trying to set me up with his nephew. Jokingly, I hope. I'm not an absolute creep, I'm not dating Jason's ten year old nephew. 

"Nico!" Jason calls out.   
"What?" I answer from my room.   
"Come meet my nephew, Will."   
I sigh as I walk to the door. I expect to see Jason with a cringey ten year old boy who thinks 'stupid' is a curse word and 'boobs' is the funniest word in the world. This is not what I see. I see Jason with a tall, blond haired, freckley man with an incredibly bored expression on his face.   
"But........" I start, but don't finish. He's not a cringey ten year old, that's for sure.   
"Hi." Will says, waving to me and smiling. "I, um, I like your boots."   
"Thanks." I say. What else do you say?   
"So," Jason says in a voice that has many implications, "Both of you are emo." I look at Will with his pastel rainbow shirt. Will's equally confused at Jason's statement.  
"What?" He asks.  
"And," Jason says in a tone with even more implications (I didn't know such a tone even existed until this moment), "You're both gay! Play nice, boys." He gives a mischievous smile and, while Will and I are equally confused at everything Jason has just said, Jason shoves us into a closet.  
"Really, dude?" Will shouts as we hear the lock click. "I just came out of here!" I gotta admit, I'm very attracted to people who make gay puns. 

 

It's been about half an hour since this whole debacle started. Since then, Will has repeatedly rammed his body into the door and hummed 'Nonstop' from Hamilton over fifteen times, which, mathematically, doesn't make sense.  
"Do you want to play a game?" He asks me. Damn, his eyes are gorgeous.   
"Sure." I reply, regretting my answer instantly.   
"Great!" He starts explaining how icebreaker games work. As if I hadn't been to a second grade sleepover. I mean, I haven't, but I've read books. Everyone knows how to play these kinds of things. 

"What's your deepest secret?" Will asks me. So far I've admitted that I'm afraid of giraffes, that my favorite food is pasta, and if I was trapped in an island I would bring my computer and a knife. I swear, I wasn't trying to be edgy.   
"I'm gay." I respond.   
"Yeah, I know." He says. "That's not a secret."   
"Jason's the only one who knows. And now you, I guess." Will raises an eyebrow.  
"Oh dang. I'm sorry. He should've have outed you."   
I shrug. "I was mad at first, but the soothing sound of Hamilton made me feel better." Will nods. "It always does."  
"So," I ask, "How are you Jason's nephew? You're about his age, right?"   
Will nods. "Yeah. It's complicated, but my grandfather..... well, he's not very loyal. But yeah, I'm only about a year younger than Jason." He pauses a moment to stare into space. "I'm hungry."  
"Well, I don't know how to get out of here." I say.   
"Just ram through the door. You're strong." He says as I roll my eyes. As if I'm going to run through a door. Even if I was strong enough to run through a door, why would I? I don't want to pay from that door. 

I hear footsteps walking toward the closet. Will is sitting behind me on the floor, braiding my hair. He said he loved how it's just long enough to braid, then begged me for at least ten minutes to let him braid it. 

As Jason's footsteps near, Will and I stand up. I quickly run my hands through my hair to get out the braid, not because I don't like it, but because if Jason saw, I'd never hear the end of it. He opens the door, smiling mischievously. He doesn't keep smiling for long, though, because I punch him. "Worth it." He groans from the floor. 

Jason stays on the floor for about five minutes, by which time Will and I are discussing lunch options. "So, do you want to go grabs lunch somewhere?" I ask.   
"Like a date?" He smirks. He's probably joking, but why not give it a shot?   
"Yes." I respond, wiping the teasing smirk off his face with a single word.  
"Oh. I- um, yeah! I'd love to!"   
Jason stands up and yells "YES! Success!"   
"Shut up, Jason." I say.   
"That's Uncle Jason, now, kiddo." Oh my god. I consider for a moment not dating Will, because if I do, I will be related to Jason. I quickly decide to stick with my choice when I see Will smiling at me. He's worth a lifetime of putting up with Jason.


	92. Vaffancullo

"Kayla Knowles if you don't get back here, I swear, I will very slowly and painfully kill you!" Nico yelled. All Will could understand were the words, 'kill you,' but he supposed the beginning of the sentence could be 'My dear friend, I would never,' in which case everything would be fine. Unfortunately, he very much doubted this was the case. 

-A few moments earlier-  
"Oh gods, I love this game!" Austin said as he watched Will act out 'The Bee Movie.'   
"Oh, human, I love you. Ya like jazz?" Will said.   
"Charades isn't as hard when you can use words." Percy said happily.   
"It's easier, but it defeats the entire purpose of the game." Annabeth pointed out.   
"Yet none of you have guessed it." Kayla said. "The Bee Movie. A cinematic masterpiece." Will got down from the Poseidon cabin's stage. No one was really sure why the Poseidon cabin had a stage in it, but no one was complaining. It was nice for impromptu charades nights. "Okay, Kayla. You got that one, so you go next." Will sat on the ground next to Nico. Neither of them knew what was about to happen. 

Kayla walked up onto the stage. "Okay, so I'm gonna do one not in the bowl," she said, adjusting her stance for whatever she was about to act out. "I'm so emo." Everyone immediately looked at Nico, who was scowling. "Tag yourself, I'm the corn plant! Will could pin me up against anything with those arms. You're not my type. So anger. Much edgy. Death metal rules!"   
"Are....you trying to be Nico?" Percy asked, visibly upset at her interpretation of their friend.   
"Duh." Kayla said. Nico stood up and looked around. "Is that how you guys see me?" Kayla just stood there, looking at him. "Do you not see yourself that way?" Nico's eye twitched. Kayla saw this and ran. 

"Kayla Knowles, I swear, if you don't get back here right now I will kill you, resurrect you, then kill you again!" Nico shouted.   
"Oh dang." Annabeth, who apparently understood Italian, said. "That's not good." Nico took off running after Kayla.  
"Hmm. So anger." Will sighed, grabbing his first aid kit and trudging after his boyfriend.

 

Will stared at the harsh artificial light of his computer screen. He was trying to learn Italian so he could understand Nico when he was angry. However, it was not going very well. Reading English was hard enough, add another non-ancient Greek language to the mix, and it just gets worse. "Why would I need to know how to say 'newspaper?' Phones exist!" And yeah, he supposed most demigods didn't have phones, but the computer software didn't know that. "Why is everything gendered?" He screamed into the night sky. Then he realized that was just about the worst thing he could've done in this situation. Harpies swooped down as Will ran frantically to the nearest cabin. "Will?" Will turned around nervously to look at his friend. "Oh. Lou Ellen, I didn't realize this was your cabin." She gave him a blank look. "You just ran into a random cabin?" "I was being chased by harpies, Lou. You would've done the same thing." "Why were you outside this late? Don't you have a cabin to manage?" Will rolled his eyes. "I'm trying to learn Italian for Nico. I like knowing what he's saying when he's mad."   
"And how's that working out for ya?" "I think you know the answer." Lou nodded and gestured for Will to come to the back of her cabin.   
"Woah." Will said upon seeing the rest of the cabin. "How is this cabin so big?"  
"Magic." Lou said simply. "Here." She handed him a small device. It looked like a smartphone. "This will translate whatever he says into English, no matter what language. Italian, French, ASL.....  It'll appear on the screen. And it doesn't attract monsters, so that's good." "Why don't you sell this? You could make millions." Lou rolled her eyes. "Art isn't about the money. Also, it doesn't work for mortals. I don't know why, and I don't care. Now," She said, pushing Will out of her cabin, "Let me get some sleep."

 

"Sto per tagliarti la testa." Will heard his boyfriend murmur in his sleep. It had been about a week since Lou had given him the device, but he hadn't used it yet. Don't get him wrong, he definitely wanted to, Will just never had it on him when he needed it. But now was this chance. "What'd you say?" Will whispered. Nico muttered some words as Will watched the message appear on the screen. 'I'm going to chop your head off.' 

Will was still bewildered by his boyfriend's sleep talking the next morning at breakfast. Since he wasn't allowed to spend the night in Nico's cabin, he couldn't express his concerns to his siblings, or they would know he broke the rules. Maybe he could ask Nico?

"Nico."   
Nico looked up from his waffles. "Yeah?"  
"So, um, I know we're demigods, so I mean, I guess it wasn't that weird I guess but I— anyway, last night you sleep-talked. You said, um, that you were going to chop someone's head off." Nico didn't respond, he just started laughing. "What's so funny?" Will asked. Nico took another bite of his waffle. "I knew you were listening. Lou Ellen told me." "That scoundrel!" "Yeah. And so I spent hours coming up with the creepiest thing to say. Was it as hilarious as I thought it would be?"   
"This is why I have trust issues." Will paused. "Worth it."


	93. Violets and Grass

Nico POV  
I walk out of my cabin, my mind still full of sleep. I sip my lukewarm coffee and start walking toward the dining pavilion. Some people like hot coffee. Some people like cold coffee. I personally like lukewarm coffee. Room temperature. Although, realistically, I'll drink any coffee. I'm walking down the stairs in front of my cabin, drinking more coffee, when I trip. I fall down onto the ground. I look around to make sure no one saw my embarrassing trip. It doesn't seem like anyone did. So now I check to see what I tripped on. I'm very confused at what I see. A small-ish pile of violets and grass is sitting on the top step. Who put it there? Did someone put it there just for the sake of tripping me or for some other unknown goal? I stand up and walk, my clothes dripping with coffee, to the dining pavilion.

"Just a big pile of grass and flowers!" I complain. I see a few Demeter children at the table next to ours snicker. What's their deal? Did they put the flowers and grass there? "Well," Will said, avoiding eye contact, "Maybe he had a reason." I raise an eyebrow at him questioningly. "What kind of reason?" Will shrugged. "Maybe it means something." I shake my head in mild irritation. Hate mail in the form of flowers. 

 

"Wait. Nico, are you really this dumb?" I hear a voice from behind me. I turn and see a Demeter girl running after me. "Katie? Why are you saying I'm dumb? I will sneak into your cabin and replace your shoelaces with slightly overcooked spaghetti." Katie just looks at me. "I- what? Sneak into my cabin? Spaghetti? I don't even know where to start with that." I walk away when she's questioning my threat. 

 

The rest of the day is a blur. I teach some younger kids how to sword fight. I go to Annabeth's Ancient Greek class. I put away gauze and unopened strep tests in the infirmary. I go back to my cabin and draw a bit. Then I go to sleep. Nothing interesting. 

"Son." Hades says. I must be dreaming. However, since I'm a demigod, dreams can never really be dreams, can they? Nothing can be easy.   
"Hey." I say. "Why am I here. I want to actually sleep for once instead of dream traveling." Hades squints. "Stop with that attitude. It's very unbecoming."   
"Rude."  
"I swear, I will chuck a pomegranate at you."  
"Also very rude." As I say this, Hades throws his hands to his face in frustration. At least he wasn't throwing a pomegranate to his face in frustration. I try to leave, but since I'm dreaming, there's no UNDERWORLD EXIT door. "What did you want from me?" Hades composes himself. "You like this Solace boy, no?" "Yeah, I do. But the way you phrased it with the 'this' and the 'no' makes you sound like an old, gay, Italian man," I respond, thinking of my childhood neighbor, an old, gay, Italian man named John. He didn't exactly say he was gay, but I could tell. Gaydar, ya know?

"I summoned you here to tell you that he likes you back. The Apollo boy, not an old, gay, Italian man like yourself." Oh dang. I am an old, gay, Italian man. I mean, I'm only 15, but I'm also kinda in my nineties? I think about this for a moment before I process the rest of what he said. "Will likes me back?"  
"Obviously. Did you not see the plants he left you?"  
"That was Will? And what do grass and violets have to do with anything?"  
"Has your stepmother not taught you about flowers and their meanings?"  
"No," I say, "Persephone hates me." Hades just nods, neither confirming nor denying the statement. "Well, violets and grass represent bisexual and gay romance. So do with that what you will."

I wake up suddenly. What? Will's gay for me? I mean, he's be gay even if it wasn't for me, or bi, I guess, or he thinks I'm bi. Either way, Will likes me. How do I act on this? 

 

Will's alone in the infirmary when I approach him. I usually go to help with restocking or setting bones, but today I have something else in mind. I walk up to Will. "Grass, huh? The violets were pretty, I have to admit." Will looks from side to side. "I don't know what you're talking about. I-" "Will. I like you, too." He smiles nervously. "Thank you." "Why are you thanking me?" He shrugs. "It felt like the right thing to do." Then we just stand there uncomfortably. "So...." I say, breaking the awkward silence, "I'm not 100% sure what couples do, or even if you consider us a couple yet. But do you.... maybe want to make out in a storage closet?" "Absolutely. Just not that one." Will responds, pointing to a seemingly random medical supply closet. I didn't ask why. It's an infirmary. When someone says to not go somewhere in an infirmary, you don't ask why. It's usually something gross. Like used needles or Enrique. I shiver at the thought. I look back to Will and smile. "Let's go."


	94. Warmed Up

"I'm so f-ing cold." my fiancé complained as he closed the door. He stomped the snow off his black boots and took off his coat. His face was pink from the cold. His lips were chaffed, and you could see little snowflakes on his eyelashes.  
"It's not that cold out. It's in the double digits!"  
He raised an eyebrow at me. "Double digits? What are you, five?"  
"Five heads taller than you."  
"I will destroy you."  
"You can destroy me later. Help me put up groceries." He walked over to me and took the cereal and bread from a bag. When we were done, I asked Nico if he was still cold. "Yeah. It's freezing in here. I can't believe you, a son of Apollo, aren't cold."  
"You should go get some blankets. I'll put on a movie and we can warm up together."  
He nodded and smiled. "Okay. That sounds nice." 

NPOV  
When I entered the bedroom, Will had already put on Disney's Hercules. He loved the way my dad was portrayed in that movie. Once, he forced me to dress like Disney Hades for Halloween while he was Meg. Hades ended up summoning me to the underworld that night, which made for some pretty awkward conversation.  
Anyway, Will was in our bed, curled up eating popcorn. He gestured for me to come over next to him. He kissed me gently when I sat down. 

We were about halfway through the movie when he kissed me not-so-gently. And so I kissed him back not-so-gently. He bit my lip and I moaned in response.  
"What are doing?" I whispered.  
"Warming you up." 

A bit later, Will and I heard a knock on the door. We looked at each other, naked, sweaty, and sticky. Neither us us got up. Whoever was at our door would have to wait.


	95. Wattpad

"Wait.... you like me?" Nico asked. Will had posted on his Wattpad 'I'm in love with my best friend what do I do?' And Nico, who Will didn't realize had an account, read it.   
"What?" Will asked.  
"On your Wattpad." Nico explained. "You said you were in love with your best friend. I'm your best friend. Are you in love with me?"  
"What?" Will repeated.   
"Well," Nico continued, "I hope it's me, because if it is, I feel the same way. I like you back. Can I kiss you?" Nico asked. And they kissed.

"Hazel, I don't know what to do!" Nico shouted into the Iris Message. "Will and I told each other we liked each other, you know, romantically. But I'm not ready for a relationship. I don't know what to do, I don't want to make him sad, and he's my best friend. I can't ruin our platonic relationship just because I don't love him like I thought I did!"  
"Woah." Hazel spoke calmly. "It'll be fine. Just tell him I don't approve of your relationship, and break up with him. Or tell him the truth. You simply aren't ready for a romantic relationship yet, because you're fourteen. Tell him, if it's true, that when you are ready, if he still likes you, you'd love to get together. You just aren't ready now." Nico nodded, panicking. He loved Will, he just couldn't do this right now. And worse, Will's cabin was being rebuilt (Leo accidentally burned it down) so he was staying with Nico for a few days. When he told Hazel this, she said, "Wait a few days. You'll figure out what you need to do."

Nico did not wait a few days. Knowing he was lying to Will made him feel sick. He loved the other boy, and couldn't make him think he loved him when he didn't. Will deserved so much more than that. Will deserved everything in the world, someone who loved him and made him happy. It broke Nico's heart that he couldn't be that person.   
"Hey, Will." Nico approached him.  
"Hey, Neeks!" Will said, very happy. Nico was so mad at himself. Why couldn't he just suck it up? Will deserved happiness.   
"Hey, Will?" Nico sat next to him. "I love you so much. But I don't think I'm ready for a relationship yet. I mean, I'm fourteen and you're sixteen, so it's already not perfect, and I love you, but I don't think I'm really ready. I'm so sorry. I'm so so sorry. I'd still like to be best friends, if you're okay with that. I just realized I don't love you that way. You're my best friend and I would do anything for you. I'm so sorry."  
Nico said this all very quickly. Will looked crushed. Will had been through a lot lately, and he couldn't believe Nico was doing this to him.   
"Okay." Will nodded. He had tears in his eyes.   
"Are you mad?" Asked Nico.  
"No. I'm not mad. It's your choice."  
"I'm sorry I made you sad."  
"Thanks."


	96. Weird

NPOV  
"I've had the weirdest day." Will complained to me.   
"What happened?" I asked as I dried the dishes he was washing. It was nice living together, especially now that Jason had gotten over his spy-on-Nico-and-Will phase. That was creepy. "I was leaving New Rome Hospital for the day, and a little girl came up to me."  
"That doesn't sound that weird. You work on the kids and teens floor." He puts his hands on his hips. "Will you let me finish? Thank you. She walked up to me and said, "You are living a life of sin, Dr. Will." I'm not sure how she knew my first name. I go by Dr. Solace at work. Then she said "Let Jesus devour your sins and set you free." That was even weirder. I told her that most of the people in New Rome were literally descended from Pagan deities, but she just winked at me and ran off." Yikes. Maybe he had worked too long because someone shoved another lightbulb up his butt and he was sleep deprived. That happens far too often. I can't tell you how many times Will's had to work late because an idiot shoved something up his butt. Not even normal butt stuff, but like, lightbulbs, tennis balls, rolled up socks. What is wrong with them?   
"Will. Did you sleep at all last night?"   
"Yes. I did. I'm not imagining this, I know it happened. And I know what you're thinking. And yes, I did have to get a wii remote out of a kid's butt. But this happened." He paused before adding, "What is it with people and shoving things up their butts?" I decided not to comment on that, because it was neither the time nor the place. Instead, I finished drying the dishes and put in a movie. Ugh. Will loves the Bee Movie. I don't get why, but I guess I know too much about bees to enjoy it. It's so incorrect. Will says he likes it 'for the irony.' I think he likes it for the bee x lady romance.

A few minutes into the movie, Will put his head in my lap. We cuddled for a few minutes before he asked, "I'm not living a life of sin, right?"  
"Oh my gods. Will, we are Greek. Even if our love was sinful, would you want someone to devour your sins?"  
Will laughed. "I guess you're right."  
"Of course I am. I love you so much."  
"I love you, too."  
He kissed me and I blushed. We've been together for years and he still makes me blush. I couldn't understand how he could make me giggle like a school child by raising his eyebrows at me. But two can play at this game. I whisper something in his ear and watched his face turn pink. Success!


	97. Werewolf

I move a little in the tree, watching as the man drives away. Every other Friday he comes out here, puts flowers in front of a certain tree, and stays there a few minutes. Then he drives away. I wonder if all humans are like this, oddly sentimental, yet incredibly charming. I'm a human, I suppose. At least, most of the time. Once a month I become a monster.  
"You're a furry, man." They say. But I'm not. I couldn't control being bitten by a werewolf. If anyone fell in love with me, they would be a furry. It would be a very Remus Lupin romance. I just need to find my Sirius. 

 

The next day, I enter my workplace in human form. Sipping my coffee, I walk to my desk and start selling time shares in Alabama. I don't even live anywhere near Alabama, but Med school is expensive, and skipping class every full moon doesn't  exactly help my grades.  
"Yo. Will." Leo says. "Check your drawer."   
I open my desk, and it's full of cans. I pick one up. "Chef Sam's super spicy sauce in a can." I read. "Hilarious, Leo. Gold star."  
"I know, right? Where were you last night? You didn't go to Drew's party. Plus, you look terrible."  
"Gee. Thanks, Leo." I say, trying to call another person who definitely needs an Alabama time share.  
"You know what I mean. Where were you?"  
"I had to preform my biweekly cult sacrifice."  
"Fine. I get it, you don't want to talk about it. But I'm supposed to tell you that there's a new guy starting here today." Leo walks back to his desk, leaving me wondering what they'll be like.

As soon as I see him, I know I'm screwed.  
"You!" I yell. Everyone turns to look at me.   
"Um, sorry," I say, "I thought you were someone else."  
"Everyone, this is Nico. He'll be working with you all for the next few months. Nico, have anything to say? Why did you decide to work with us?" Piper, our manager asks.   
"I just really, really love Alabama. And timeshares. Woohoo." He imitates joy and plasters on a fake smile. "Where's my desk?"

He's the top salesman by the end of the month. I honestly don't get how.   
"Look, man." He says into the phone as I watch from my desk. "Honestly, you don't need a time share. Alabama is crap, you should never go there. But now that I've said that, you really want one, just to spite the cocky guy on your phone who thinks you don't need one." How does that work? It really shouldn't. Maybe he just gets really spiteful customers? Maybe people think he's joking and like him? Either way, he's good. 

Tonight's another full moon. Being a werewolf honestly isn't as painful as popular fiction says it is. It's more embarrassing than anything. I don't want to be a cute little wolf. I want to be a cute, tallish human. The good news is that I get to creep on Nico. I'm, like, 99% sure he's the same man who leaves the flowers, but it's dark outside. Tonight I'm going find out. 

Today it's tulips. He just stands there, staring sadly at the tree. I walk behind him and nuzzle my... snout? Do I have a snout? I nuzzle my face against him. Yeah, face is a better word.   
"What the- a wolf?" He says. Yeah, he's Nico. "Oh, you're the wolf that stares at me from that tree. Hey, wolf." He pats my head. "I'm Nico. I'll call you Sunshine. Your eyes look familiar for some reason." 

He sits on the ground next to me. "Can I complain to you a little bit, Sunshine?" He doesn't wait for an answer, which makes sense, because wolves don't answer. "My sister died here. A few years ago, right there, on a full moon like tonight. So I come and leave her flowers, to honor her memory." Nico sighs loudly. "I worry that if I don't keep coming, I'll forget her. But that's kind of silly, don't you think? I don't think I'm capable of forgetting her. I miss her." 

Oh dang. This is beyond my furry capabilities. I need to enlist human Will. I jump up and wiggle. "Are you okay?" Nico asks. I shake my head. "Yeah...... I'm just gonna go." He stands up and walks back into his car. At the last moment, I jump in with him.   
"Get out. Get out, Sunshine." He tries to push me out of the car, but I'm too strong. Nico eventually gives up. "Fine. You can come with me." 

 

Looking back, that was a bad choice. I shouldn't have hopped into his car, or refused to get out when he tried to push me away. Because now, I am locked inside his house. I followed him in here, like an idiot, and now I am trapped. It's not all bad though. He talks to me a lot. Nico says he talks to himself often, so having someone else to do that with is kinda nice. It makes him feel less weird. 

I find out a lot about him. His favorite food is pasta with pesto. He uses lavender scented shampoo when he showers. He has a crush on one of his co workers. He won't say who. 

Okay, I just realized that I made it sound like I watched him shower. I did not. I would like to make it clear that as much as I'd like to see Nico's butt, I'd like for him to know it's me, and for him to be okay with it. Just wanted to make sure I said that. Back to my regularly scheduled freak out. 

I had made the mistake of jumping into his car and following him home, and now I'm 'sleeping' on the bottom of the bed. It should be fine as long as I don't fall asleep. As soon as the full moon is no longer in the sky, I will no longer be a wolf. Then I can slip out from under the covers and leave. It's a fool proof plan.

 

NPOV  
I wake up and walk to my kitchen, halfway done with my coffee when I remember Sunshine. I go over to my bed to see if he's still sleeping, but he's gone. I check the rest of my home. He's not anywhere. Maybe I dreamed about him? No. He was too real. I put my coffee in a portable mug and head to work. 

"Hey, Nico." My coworker, Will, says. I look at him and something clicks. Those eyes.   
"Sunshine?"


	98. Will’s Crimes

Nico POV  
I'm a detective. And a good one, at that. I solve crimes and look good doing it. A real life version of that hot detective person. You know the one.

Oh, wait. Sorry about the confusion. That description was for my friend, Reyna. Here's my description; A good detective, but very socially awkward. I solve crimes and look sleep deprived doing it.

Yeah. That's better. More accurate.

"Nico, we're going to Chad's bar. You in?" Reyna asks. I nod and stand up, grabbing my coat and bag, and following her out the door.

 

"He's hot." Reyna says, tilting her head to gesture to a dashing young man in an environmental protection shirt.   
"Yeah. But he's with that woman. She's probably his girlfriend."  
"Pretty sure she's his sister."  
I nod. "Hm. I'll.... I'll get his number. Probably." I look down at my drink. "Probably not. But I'll ask."

I wave at him and he blushes. I walk over.  
"Hi. I'm Detective Di Angelo. Er- Nico. I'm Nico."  
The blond guy looks from side to side and smiles. "I'm Will."  
His (I hope) sister whispers something to him. His eyes fill with panic as his sister smirks.  
"Oh my God!" He yells. "Officer, I'm so sorry! Please, don't arrest me! I didn't realize that the cup was recyclable! If I had known, I would have recycled like a decent human being. I'm so sorry."   
"What?" I ask, confused. "I'm not going to arrest you. I don't care that you didn't recycle a cup."  
"Don't arrest me! Please! I'm a pop culture sensation!"  
"That's not true." The woman mutters from beside him.   
"I don't care that you didn't recycle that cup," I say, "I didn't even know that. And we don't arrest people for that."  
"OooOOOoooHHhhhh." Will shouts, "So you don't care about the environment. Typical. You people disgust me. I bet you use plastic water bottles! I bet you don't even carry reusable bags! How dare you? Do you have no respect for this planet?"  
"Do you..... want me arrest you?"  
"I want you to want to!"  
I sigh. "Fine. Oh, dang. You got me this time, criminal. You'd better run. But give me your number first because I've got a thing for environmental activists."   
"Fine." Will places his hand on his head. "I will go out with you as payment for my crimes."  
"You don't have to go out with me. I'm not going to make you date me."  
"No, no. This is justice. I will take this punishment with honor. Do what you must."  
"So," I say, "Do you want to go out with me or not? I'm getting pretty mixed signals."   
I mean, he was saying yes, but he was also referring to a date as a punishment, so I don't really know.   
"Yes, Nico." Will says, dropping the criminal facade, "I want to go out with you."  
"Oh! Great! Um, here's my number."

AN// Have a pun. Will's a criminal. A crimiWill! I get humor.


	99. Will On Ice

"Will! Guess what? I got us tickets to that ice skating show everyone's been talking about!"  
Will's stomach lurched. He tried to hide his fear behind a plastered on smile and a, "Oh, Nico, that's great!" 

But it was not great. It was, in fact, a very bad thing. You see, Will Solace had a secret. A terrible, shameful secret. No one knew, not even Nico. Will felt bad about not telling his boyfriend, after all, Nico trusted him with his flag making, but Will just couldn't bring himself to tell him.

Will was an ice skater. He did a show a week, and Nico never knew. "Wow, Will. You sure love the infirmary!" Nico would say. Will did love the infirmary. That wasn't a lie. He just wasn't always there when he said he was. 

Annabeth had caught on. New York's favorite ice skater looked eerily familiar.  
"William Fredbert Solace!"  
"That's not my middle name. It's Bartholomew Smith. The Smith is pronounced Smithe. With a capital I."  
"What?" Annabeth dropped her hands to her sides. "That's worse than Fredbert!"  
"Yeah," Will admitted, "It's not ideal."  
"Anyway, you're an ice skater?"   
Will laughed nervously. It was honestly more of a cackle. "What? Um, no. I hate ice. And knife shoes. You've been hanging out with Percy too much," he says, grabbing his bag and inching toward the door, "Anyway, thanks for coming in. It's always nice to see a friend."  
"William Bartholomew Smith Solace."  
"It's pronounced 'Smithe,'"   
"I don't care how you pronounce your name, I care that you're an ice dancer. And you're really good at it."  
"Aw. Thanks."   
"So you admit it's you,"  
"No."

"Hey, Nico. I'm so sorry. I can't make the ice skating thing. I'm busy that day."   
"Oh, man. That sucks." Nico frowned.   
"Yeah. I'm really sorry, I feel awful. Maybe you could give someone else those tickets?"  
Nico nods at his boyfriend. "Maybe."

Will truly did feel awful. He wanted to tell Nico, he really did. But how do you tell your boyfriend that you were secretly a very talented figure skater? There isn't exactly a WikiHow article about it.

Will thought about what he would say as he laced up his skates. He would just be honest. Nico most likely wouldn't be that upset.   
Will gracefully glided across the ice, twirling and flying in a perfect ice dance. He never got tired of this. 

"What the Hades?" Will jumped at the sound of his boyfriend's voice.   
"Oh, hi, Neeks. I'm- wait, why are you here?"  
"You didn't tell me you were an ice skater. I'm so happy for you! You're so good at skating."   
If Will had been in a movie, there would have been a record scratch sound.   
"Wait... you're not upset that I kept it from you?"  
"Well," Nico admitted, "I was a little at first. But now I'm just really proud of my boyfriend." Nico walked over to Will and wrapped his arms around the taller boy's chest. "But the bad news is that I panicked and told Reyna. Now she's not going to let you hear the end of it."

"Why didn't you tell anyone? Why didn't you tell me?" Nico asked.  
"I- it's hard being a medic. I'm seen as not being as tough as fighters. You can raise the dead, Percy can control water, Piper has mind control. And ice skating doesn't really help my badass image."  
"Well, for the record, you are really badass. I get your concern, but I don't think anyone else thinks of you as weak or anything. We've all seen you during combat and times of war. We know you're super tough."   
Will smiled. "Thanks. I love you so much."


	100. Words

Nico looked at his arm and laughed. His words never failed to cheer him up. 'Oh, fuck. I bet that's him. Quick, think something cool. Oh, shit. That didn't count, did it? Oh no. I blew it. He'd better not be my soulmate.'

Everyone was born with words on their wrist. The words were the first thing your soulmate will think when they see you. As soon as Nico could read, he knew two curse words. His parents made him cover his words with bracelets and long sleeves when he was at school, so the other kids wouldn't also learn the words. Now that Nico was an adult, he didn't have to cover his words. 

His were definitely not the worst words. He knew someone who had 'please have my babies' on their wrist. His sister, Hazel, had 'how does she not know how to use a cell phone? I need to go help her.' Her boyfriend, Frank, had 'I hope he's not judging me for not being able to use this cell phone.' 

On his friend Reyna's arm was, in all caps, 'BITCH USE YOUR BLINKER OR I SWEAR I WILL HIT YOU SO HARD YOUR EYES WILL POP OUT OF YOUR ASS! Oooh she's pretty, she can live.'

Nico wasn't too desperate to meet his soulmate. He had a pretty full life. He had friends and hobbies. But sometimes he did get lonely. He had to admit that having a boyfriend would be nice. Someone to drink coffee with and to stay up until three am with. Someone to binge tv shows with and someone to cry with when bad things happened. Someone to love.

"Nico. You are coming and that is final." Hazel said, glaring at her brother.   
"I don't want to third wheel on your date with your boyfriend." Nico groaned.   
"Maybe you'll meet someone. Maybe you'll even meet your soulmate!"  
"I seriously doubt my soulmate would be at a cat cafe. What kind of nerd goes to a cat cafe?"  
"You are going. Come on. I'll buy you a coffee." Hazel said. Nico considered this. "Fine."

Nico drank his coffee angrily. He had three cats climbing on him. On on his head, one at his feet, and one on his lap.   
"They seem to like you." The cat cafe lady giggled. Nico glared at her.   
"Which one are you taking home?" She asked.   
"None of them. I came for the coffee."   
"It sure would be a shame if you left without taking a little angel."  
"Go away." Nico said. The lady rolled her eyes and walked away. 

Nico was about to leave. He was going to go to the car and wait for Hazel and Frank to be done with the cats. He started walking to the door when he bumped into someone.   
"I'm sorry," He mumbled. Then he looked up. Fanfiction blue eyes, Nico thought.

"Um," The man said uncomfortably. "Sorry. I'm Will."   
"Nico."  
"Ooooooooohhhhhh, Nico's got a boyfriend!" Hazel squealed from behind her brother.   
"I just met him!" Nico said angrily. "He's not my boyfriend!"   
"Would you like to be? I've been told I have fanfiction blue eyes. But I'm also a disaster, so you win some you lose some."   
"It's funny, I actually thought that when I first bumped into you."  
"Soulmates!" Hazel's body was trembling with excitement. She handed Will a paper booklet.   
"What is this?" He asked.  
"A guide to dating Nico, plus some tests to make sure you're good enough for him."  
"Hazel...." Nico groaned.   
"I need to make sure he's right for you."  
"Ignore her." Nico said. "What brings you to the cat cafe?"  
"I need to buy more cat treats for my cat, Edmund. She gets mad if I run out of treats, and the ones from here are her favorite."  
"Yeeeee! I love cats!" Hazel said, trying to force the pamphlet into Will's hand.   
"Um... thanks?" Will said to Hazel, before turning to Nico. "Do you want to go out some time?"  
Nico smiled. "I'd like that."


	101. Writers

AN// This fic does not condone murder

Nico POV  
I can't believe it. This is perfect. I think back to a few months ago, the first time I had heard of this new dating app. It took your search history and matched you up with someone near you with similar searches. I meet up with Will Solace, a guy who had similar searches to me. I figure that he's a writer like I am.

"So, Nico," Will smiles, "If you were to kill someone, metaphorically, how would you do it?"   
"I'd inject air in between their toes. Cause a mock heart attack." I say. Aw, he is a writer.  
Will nods and writes something in the notebook he has with him.   
"So, what do you write?" I ask. Will looks around nervously.  
"Ya know. Books. Articles. Plays, sometimes."  
"Oh, that's neat. What plays?"  
"The Bee Movie."  
"What?"  
"Um, yeah. I have a pen name."

Something in my head clicks.   
"Will, how long does it take for a body to bleed out?" I ask, testing my theory.  
"Anywhere from 2 to 30 minutes, usually."  
"And how do you know that?"  
"Um, the internet."  
"Will, are you a murderer?"

Will stuffs his mouth with salad and points to himself like, 'I'd answer but I can't because my mouth's too full. I wouldn't want to be rude.' 

"It's not murder if you're killing people who deserve to die!" Will says, cheerfully sipping his fizzy water.  
"I'm pretty sure it's still murder if they deserve to die." I put 'deserve' in air quotes.  
"No it's not! Okay," Will admits, "You're right. But I'm not in the wrong here! I only kill creeps!"  
"How....... What makes a person a creep to you? Because you're seeming pretty creepy."  
"Like, if a person assaults someone and is super rich so they get away with it, I kill them. Vigilante justice."

Okay. I gotta admit, that's kind of hot. It wouldn't be hot if he was murdering innocent people, but, like, serial killers and rapists and kidnappers and such. 

"Have you ever killed an innocent person?"  
"Well," Will says, "Once I asked a vet to put my cat down because she was dying painfully. It was the saddest day of my life. I still cry about it sometimes. She was so tiny and sweet. She deserved so much more."   
Tears started falling from Will's eyes. "I miss her so much."

He seems sweet, minus the whole vigilante justice thing. He's cute. He likes cats. I'd never run out of ideas for my books.   
"Will, do you want to go see a movie after this?"


	102. X-Ray

Nico smiles up at me. "Will!" He says quietly. "Nico!" I respond. He had just woken up from anesthesia. He had to get an MRI and an X-ray after getting stabbed in the head, just to make sure he didn't have any long term damage. Surprisingly, he didn't. A sword to the head which left nothing but a small scar. I must be a really good healer.   
"Can we go home now?" Nico asks, looking up at me with wide, sleepy eyes.   
"Yep!" I say, signing him out of the New Rome hospital and walking back to our flat.

"I love you so much." He says, nuzzling his face into my shoulder. "You're the best person. So sweet and nice and smart. The second handsomest boy in the world." I laugh. "I love you, too." I had wondered what kinds of things Nico would say without a filter. I didn't suspect he'd be so sappy. "Will. Let me look at your eyes?" I turn my head so he can look at my eyes and he stares at them for a few minutes. "They're like the sky." He says, brushing his hand against my face before laying his head in my lap. "Thanks, Neeks. I like your eyes, too. What do you want for dinner?" "Chicken nuggets please." 

A few minutes later, we're sitting in bed eating chicken nuggets.   
"I love you. You're my favorite person." Nico murmurs happily, his head once again on my lap. Oh my gods, he's so cute. I mean, he's always cute, but right now he's so innocent and tiny. And he's my favorite person, too.


	103. You’re a Straight Ace Cutie.

"Oh my god, that guy is so hot."  
"I know, right? I kinda want to ask him out." Will said.   
"But you're ace?" Kayla asked. "You can't date people."  
"Kayla, c'mon. I've told this to you a million times. I'm asexual, not aromantic. I feel romantic attraction, just not sexual attraction. Even if I was aro, I could still want a relationship. Attraction doesn't equal love."  
"Sheesh. I get it, you don't wanna bang that dude, you just want to watch a movie with him."  
"Actually, I-"  
"Are you about to say you do wanna bang him because not all ace people are sex repulsed?"  
"No. I mean, it's true that we aren't all sex repulsed, but I was going to say that there's a theater next door."  
"Oh." Kayla took a long swig of her coffee. "Okay."

"Hey." Will said.  
The man looked up Will. "Hey."  
"Um, I like your pin." He pointed to the short man's ace pride pin. "You're an, um, straight ace cutie."  
"Thanks. I'm actually a gay ace cutie, but I appreciate the compliment."  
"Oh, um that's good!"  
"Why?"  
"I don't know. I don't want to ask out a straight guy."  
"Are you planning on asking me out? Because that's what you seem to be implying."  
"Yeah. Do you want to go see a movie next weekend? I have a coupon for popcorn. It's still hella expensive, but the illusion of being frugal helps my self esteem."  
"I would love to see a movie with you."

 

"Hey," Will said when he saw his date standing in front of the theater. "How are ya?"  
"I'm good, actually." Nico replied.   
"Great! Let's go watch a movie!"

"What. The. Fuck." Will said, nauseated. "Why did you pick that movie?"   
"My sister said it was good," Nico said, "She was right, if good means 'makes you want to die and take the movie with you.' Because that's how I'm feeling right now. I want to die and take the movie with me."  
"Same. But.... do you maybe want to go get lunch and talk about how bad the movie was?"   
Nico smiled. "Sure."

"Okay, so, this pasta is delicious." Will said, filling his mouth with spaghetti, "So was the candy that hand ate."  
"I swear, you're going to make me vomit."  
"Just like that hand."  
"Stop, man."  
"Can I just do one more?"  
"Fine."  
"The hand died."  
"That was a dark 'one more.'"  
"Yeah, but it came back to life. I'd like to die and come back to life. Like Jesus, or a cool ass zombie."  
Nico deadpanned, "Why would you want that?"  
Will shrugged, "It sounds like it would be fun."  
"How would that be fun?"  
"It would be like a long nap. I'm a med student, I can use the sleep."  
"Why don't you sleep now?"  
"Because I'm here with you and sleeping would be rude."  
"No," Nico explained, "Not, like, now now, but when you get home."  
"When I get home I have to study. If I was dead for a bit I wouldn't have to study."  
"Because you'd be dead. You do realize that taking a long nap for the same amount of time you'd be dead takes the same amount of time. You'd miss the studying either way."   
"Nico, congratulations! You've broken my brain."  
"Was it ever really unbroken to begin with?"  
"Rude." Will shoved more spaghetti into his mouth. As soon as he swallowed, he continued to speak. "I bet I can eat more breadstick than you."   
Nico smiled, "You're on."

Nico won the contest. "I am the carb king!" He yelled. Nearby tables glared at them.   
"Damn. I'm not the carb king. I'm the pain peasant. Get it, because pain is French for bread. And we had a bread eating contest?"  
"Yes, Will. I get the joke. It just wasn't that funny."   
"I thought it was hilarious."  
"You're a dork."  
"I would be offended but it's true. I'm an adorable dork. There should be a word for that."  
"There is. My sister, Hazel, says it all the time."  
"Well, what is it?"  
"Adorkable."  
"I love it!" 

"Sir," A passing waiter said, "Please stop yelling. You'll have to leave the establishment."  
Nico had the sudden urge to start screaming, just to stick it to the guy who told him he couldn't. He didn't, but he really really wanted to. 

"I kinda want to scream now. Just to stick it to the establishment." Will said. "I'm not going to. But I really really want to."   
Nico smiled mischievously. "Let's do it."

 

"How was your date?" Hazel asked her brother as he flung himself onto his bed.   
"It was so great. I got kicked out of Olive Garden for the second time this year. Only one more to go until I reach my goal."  
"I don't get why that's your goal. That's a bad goal."  
"You're just jealous that you've only been kicked out of Olive Garden once. And that wasn't even your own doing, I caused you to get kicked out."  
"I promise you, I am not jealous."  
"That's what they all say."


	104. Zydeco

"Nico! Listen to this music!" Hazel called, running to catch up with her brother. "It's zydeco and it's amazing."  
"What's zydeco?" Nico asked.  
"It's a music genre from southwest Louisiana. It reminds me of my childhood. It's amazing. Listen!" Hazel reached into her pocket and pulled out a tape recorder. She pressed a button and loud music filled Nico's ears.   
"Gods! Hazel, why do you like this? It's terrible."  
"You're just jealous." Hazel said, crossing her arms and walking away.  
"Of what?" Nico yelled after her. 

"Ugh, today was the worst," Nico complained, sitting next to his boyfriend for dinner. Will nodded and took a bite of his mashed potatoes. "First I had to go to New Rome for some ambassador of Pluto thing. I don't even know why that position still exists. On top of the exhaustion of shadow traveling across the country, Hazel kept bothering me about this 'great' music genre. Zydeco. It was the worst. Now every time I think of it I want to die and take Hazel's tape recorder with me." Will just sat there, still eating his mashed potatoes. "I mean, I know she's my sister, but I absolutely hate her music. What's your take?" Nico sat there a moment, staring at Will until he noticed. Will looked up at Nico with surprise in his eyes, as if he was just now realizing that his boyfriend was sitting next to him. "Oh, Nico." Will took his cordless earbuds out of his ears and put them in his pocket. "Sorry. Didn't see you. I was hyper-focused on this great music Hazel got me into."

That was the day Nico learned  
That there was no escape   
That there was no love  
That there was no hope  
That there was only  
Zydeco.


	105. 3 Days In the Infirmary Part One

⚠️ TRIGGER WARNING ⚠️   
Description of self harm and mentions of suicide. Lots of depressed thoughts. Also, the past tense/present tense thing is pretty messed up. I might edit later.

DAY ONE  
Nico's POV  
It's late when we finally get to my room in the infirmary. Will said he'll give me a check up in the morning.

Running. Running.  
Running   
I can't keep running  
But I also can't stop  
He's chasing me and   
There is no escape.  
I fall  
And it catches me.  
I knew I was dreaming. But I'm a demigod, and therefore dreams are never really dreams. 

"Ah, Nico. So glad you're back. Now you can help me!" Eros spoke coldly. He looked like Percy the last time we met. Now he looked like....someone else.  
"I will never help you!"   
"Oh, so young, so naive. You will help me. I'll make sure of it. And if you don't? He held up his hand, a small image appearing. It was me, but something is wrong. I was smiling, but it wasn't forced. I liked the image, it made me happy. Eros clenched his fist, the image disintegrating, mist dissolving. "I'll get to learn just how much pain a boy can take before he....well, stops being so alive."  
"Are you trying to tell me you're going to kill me?" I snarled.  
He scoffed. "No, silly boy. Nothing like that. I'm not that cruel. I would simply fill you with enough dread and heartbreak to make you kill yourself. No one would miss you. Not your sister, Hazel, not that boy you like, Will, not the girl you admire, Reyna. No one. Because you are nothing. And that, Mr. Di Angelo, is why you will help me." Tears filled my eyes. I knew why he's saying isn't true. It's not. It's not. But what if it is?

"I'm not going to help you." Even I don't believe me. He got very close to me, breathing onto my face. I tried to move, I tried to scream. I couldn't. "You will. Trust me." His breath smelled like blood. The mixture of fear and disgust would have made me pass out, but I was already asleep. I tried to slap him away, but my arms would not move. "Now," He whispered, caressing my neck, "Be a good boy and run along. Oh, and think about my offer. You don't have much time left. Tell him your feelings by the end of your three days."

I fell through the previous dream and into a new one. I was back in the jar, surviving on a few fruit seeds and air long stale. I heard giants muttering about Wonderbread. What I wouldn't give for a slice of bread right then. I concentrated for a moment and tried to remember what fresh air tasted like. I was starting to remember as I once again fell. But this time, I fell into reality. 

I woke up screaming. Will was standing above me, trying to calm me down. "It's alright, Sunshine. It's a dream. It's okay, everything's fine! Please, calm down! It's all okay! You're safe now!" I stopped screaming as soon as I realized I was doing it. I started crying into Will's shoulder. I didn't care anymore. I learned at a young age that I couldn't show vulnerability. It would be the end of me. I couldn't feel emotion, for someone would use it against me. Bianca tried to protect me, but there was only so much she could do. She was twelve, a child trying to shield me from the cruel world in which we lived. I could not be vulnerable. I told myself this over and over, but my body wouldn't listen. 

I cried into Will's chest, my body shaking. What would he think of me now? A weak, injured, depressed, gay, trans boy, crying himself to sleep. Even I think I'm pathetic. Will didn't say anything. He rubbed my back and whispered that everything was fine.   
But everything's not fine. Eros was going to cause me to ruin the only friendship I had. Will would be disgusted by me when he found out I loved him. I'd rather die than ruin the only thing that keeps me going. The only thing that keeps me going anymore is having Will as a friend. And yeah, it would be great to be more, but I'm not going to risk it. This is the first time I've felt accepted in years, and I won't just let it slip away because of my asinine feelings.

Will's POV  
"Nico? Are you awake?" I ask. He doesn't answer, which means he's probably asleep. Or he's done being vulnerable for this year. I can't say I fully understand it. When I'm sad, I need people, but when Nico's sad, he cuts everyone off from himself. I think he's afraid that if he lets anyone in, they'll get hurt. But maybe I'm willing to get hurt. Because maybe I love him.

Nico's POV  
True to his word, Will gives me a check up in the morning. "Take off your shirt, Deathboy!" "Oh my gods, stop with the nickname." I complain, but I take my shirt off anyway. He offered me a shirt last night, but I said no, that I had grown attached to blood covered parrots. I really don't want to take off my shirt. He'll see my wrists. He'll stop asking why I was wearing long sleeves on a day hotter than Hades (the place, and as in temperature. I do not find my father attractive, just FYI.) But he'll see me differently. He'll know. I think back to when I was with Hedge and Reyna. They saw all of my memories and emotions. They saw, I assume, me standing in my father's palace, blood dripping into the onyx sink. If I take off my shirt, Will will know.

"I already know, Nico." He says, looking at me with pity in his eyes. No, this isn't pity, it's.......love? Concern? Not disgust or anger. "I'm a healer, I can sense them. So take off your shirt." I take off my shirt. 

He doesn't say anything as he heals my werewolf scratches. He stays silent when he checks my vitals. He only waves and halfheartedly smiles when he leaves. I must've annoyed him, or scared him, or..... no. I need to stop myself. I'm spiraling. I try to take a nap. I don't remember falling asleep, but I guess I must have, because I woke to food on my bedside table. Toast with jam, an apple, some scrambled eggs. There was also a note "I expect you to eat ALL YOUR FOOD! OR I WILL BE VERY UPSET! I'm not joking. Love, Will" 

Hmmm. 'Love, Will.' What did that mean? I was really hungry, so I ate. I didn't want to make Will upset. Most people hate me, and I don't want the one person who doesn't to start. I'm really glad he left an apple instead of a pomegranate. That would have sent me into a panic attack. Just thinking about it made me dizzy. I sat down.

There was a knock on the door. Without waiting for me to answer, the door opened. In walked Will, with his crystal blue eyes and hair as yellow as.... I don't know. Something pretty that's also yellow. I'm pretty good with words, as long as I don't have to say them out loud, but I was flustered. Fight me.  
"Fight you?" Will asked me, confused.  
"What?" Oh gods. Did I say all that out loud?  
"When I came in here you said 'fight me' but I can't fight you because I know you'd win." Thank the gods I only said the last bit. All the gods but Eros, who is going to cause me to lose all of this. As if he hadn't ruined my life enough already.

"So, I'm leaving tomorrow?" I asked. Will looked at me as if I killed someone. "No! This is day one! You still have the rest of today, tomorrow, and the next day!"  
"But I spent the night here," I complained, "That should count as day one!"  
"No. You are staying here for two more days. Doctor's orders." I sighed. Two days to tell him how I felt.  
"So," Will interrupted my train of thought. I didn't mind, mostly because my thoughts were about how much I wanted to snuggle up with him. He's so pretty, with his perfect yellow hair and freckles covering him like constellations cover the endless canvas of sky above me. "I was thinking, you're probably pretty bored, and so I got you this!" He handed me a book. "It's so gay!" He said. I raised an eyebrow at him. "Is that an insult?"   
"What? No. I'm trying to convince you to read it. Because I didn't want to read it until Kayla was like 'oh Will it's so gay' and so I read it." Oh. Will's gay. I tried (and most likely failed) to contain my excitement. Still, there's no way he'd be into me. A lot of people describe me as skinny. I don't see it. They say my hair is black and shiny. It's just really a dark, ugly brown. And so, yeah. He's my type, but if I'm his, he's got really bad taste in guys.   
"Are you going to read it?" He asks. I nod in response. Of course I'm going to read it.


	106. 3 Days In the Infirmary Part Two

⚠️ TRIGGER WARNING ⚠️   
Descriptions of Self Harm and mentions of suicide. 

Day Two  
Will's POV  
I'm not watching him sleep. I'm not a creepy vampire stalker. I'm simply staying here to make sure he doesn't have anymore nightmares. I have other patients, but not many. Most people have been healed by now. He's leaving tomorrow night. And Oh. My. Gods. Nico is so sweet and cute. I want to protect him. And I know that's stupid, he's been through so much and survived. He' doesn't need my protection. But I want to protect him nonetheless. I want to tell him that I love him. But I'm willing to wait. 

Nico's POV  
I can't wait. Only one day left. I have to tell Will tomorrow. Or I'll be driven to the brink of insanity by a τρύπα πισινό of a god.

Will's POV  
He isn't what you'd expect. He's short, but not the winged baby you see each February. He has hair so dark brown it was almost black. He is small and thin. He has bags under his eyes and his mouth was set in a scowl. He looked like Nico. But something was wrong. His irises were red. "He loves you, you know." Nico—no, a god—says. It had to be a god, as only a being of great strength could radiate such power. "Such a shame he's going to die." I step forward, sizing up this fake Nico. "Who are you?" I ask. He laughs. It's not a good laugh. "Oh! Demigods these days, I had forgotten! You're all so cute and moronic! I'm Eros!"  
"Why do you look like Nico?"   
"Do I?" He feigned surprise. "He's sooo going to die. He wouldn't want to destroy the one part of his life that he looks forward to. And who knows how you'd react?" He flashes a psychotic smile, sharp teeth glowing a blinding shade of white.   
"Are you threatening Nico?" I ask.  
"Yes. I thought it was quite obvious. Like I said, moronic."  
"You won't hurt him." I try to take another step forward. I can't.   
"Oh, I won't hurt him. Nothing as bad as that. I made him fall in love with Percy. And I can make you hate him just as easily. I'll make you hurt him. And then I'll make him hurt himself. Unless he tells you how he feels." My mouth tastes like blood. "Why the fuck are you telling me this?"   
He laughs. "So I can watch you watch your love suffer. You'll know what's bothering him, and there'll be no way to fix it."   
"No. I'll find a way. I'll tell him that I love him. Then he won't have to."  
"That won't work."  
"Why not?"  
"It won't." I'm about to try to punch him when I wake up. 

Nico is sitting his bed, hyperventilating between sobs. He's having a panic attack. I get up and sit next to him, wrapping him in a hug. He doesn't seem to mind too much. "It's okay. It's alright. You aren't there anymore. It's just a dream. You're with me now. I'll protect you."

Nico's POV  
"W-will. I'm so so so sorry." I sob into Will's chest. "He's going to kill you." "No, he's not. It's a dream. Everything is fine now." I try to leave the hug, but I can't. Will's arms won't move from around me. I have to tell him. Eros says he'll kill him. And I can risk my life, but I can't risk Will's. "I love you." I cry, clinging on to him desperately. "I love you more than I love life itself and if I don't tell you you're going to die. I'm so sorry. I know I'm a terrible person, and I don't deserve your love, but please don't hate me." Once I start talking, I can't stop. I tell him everything that happened, from my life in Italy with Bianca, to finding Hazel, to walking through Tartarus. I can't stop jabbering. But surprisingly, Will doesn't pull away. If anything, he hugs me tighter. "And Will, I'm so sorry. And I know I can't fix the things I've done, but please don't hate me. I'm so, so alone." "Nico," he whispers, "You aren't alone anymore. Hazel's here for you, Reyna's here for you, and most of the camp is here too. You aren't alone. I'm here now." He pauses. "And I love you, too."


	107. 3rd In Command

Will's POV  
"C'mon, bro." Jason whines. He's trying to get me to go with them to a bar. I keep telling him that I need to study, that med school doesn't sleep or go out with its friends and so neither do I. But they eventually convince me. Pretty easily, actually. I'll be the first one to admit I need a break. 

 

"I'm gonna go flirt with him." Percy says, pushing back his hair only for it to get back in his eyes a moment later. I look over to where he's looking. A short, pale man was sitting at a table with two women. I assume that since Percy said 'him' he's going to go for the dude. And dang, he's cute. Percy stands up and takes a step toward their table before turning back around and taking back the one step he had moved. "Can you guys come with me?" So Jason and I stand up with him.

Nico's POV  
I'm just chatting with Reyna when Piper interrupts our conversation. Reyna seems annoyed, but honestly, I like hearing Piper talk. I'm super gay, but you don't have to be attracted to her to appreciate her voice.   
"Look at those guys." She says, pointing to a nearby table. "Ten bucks says that one," She points to the tall dark haired guy. "Is the alpha. That one is his number two," She points to the short haired blonde guy. "And him..." She pauses and looks at the curly haired blond. "And he's third in command." 

Suddenly the tan, dark haired man stands up and takes a step toward us, only to take the step back and sit back down. Then they all the stand up, the 'third in command' rather begrudgingly, and walk toward us.   
"Hey, Baby." Says the 'alpha' to me. Ugh. This is why I don't leave my house. "The name's Percy. You wanna go get a drink sometime?" He hands me a business card. He's a marine biologist. And he's really hot. "No." I say. "I'd rather not. You're cute, Percy, but you're not my type." Percy's cocky smile falls from his face. He turns red and stammers, "Sorry. I, um, this is awkward." He looks from side to side and walks back to his table. 

They didn't seem to get that I wasn't interested in them. I just want to chat with my friends. A few minutes later, the 'number two' walked up, the third guy behind him, again begrudgingly. "So, I heard you like blonds?"   
"Where did you hear that?" I ask.   
He doesn't answer. "I'm Jason. Jason Grace." Jason holds out his hand for me to shake. I (spoiler alert) don't shake it. I just raise an eyebrow and look at him with a look that says, 'boy if you don't move that hand you're going to lose it.' He seems to get the message, taking a step backward and walking away. He leaves the curly haired blond guy behind. "Hey, y'all." He says. "I'm Will. I'm not a creep like my friends. I just want to apologize for my them. I'm sorry, they aren't usually like this. Sorry they made you uncomfortable." Will pauses and puts a few dollars on the table. "Here, drink away the memories of ever meeting them. Sorry." He smiles uncomfortably and walks back to his friends. 

Will's POV   
I put a twenty at the table of the uncomfortable people. Percy and Jason are....... They're pieces of work. I walk to the table and ask the waiter for the check. Percy and Jason start complaining, but I just glare at them. When we're outside, I start scolding them about how it's fine for your friend to go up to someone and ask them out, but when they say no, you don't go and do the same. I wanted to talk to that cute guy (I think I heard his friends call him Nico) too, but I'm not weird. 

"Guys! What the heck?" I shout. Percy and Jason are standing against the side of the building. I'm proud of how scared they look. I'm not going to pretend not to be proud. I've spent years trying to be intimidating. I remember once, someone was like 'you're a doctor, you aren't tough' and I was like 'I'm a badass doctor. I'll break all your bones while naming them.' 

Sorry, went off on a tangent there. I'm still yelling at Percy and Jason, both of whom now look more bored than scared, when a rabid cat hissed from a box. Honestly, I don't know what I was expecting. I kinda had it coming, standing in an alley next to a restaurant. So Jason, Percy, and I run. We jump into Jason's car a few blocks away and drive to our apartment.

3rd Person POV  
"Hey," Nico says into the phone.   
"Who is this?" A voice asks.   
"Nico, from the bar. You flirted with me and I said I wasn't interested."  
"And you've changed your mind?"  
"No. You're still not my type. And neither is your friend, Jason."  
Percy sighs. "Then why did you call me?"  
"Because your friend is hot and he didn't give me his number."  
"You just said Jason wasn't your type."  
"Dude, you have two friends."  
"I have more than two friends."  
Nico slow claps. "Good for you. I'm calling to get the cute guy's number."  
"Will? Will's number is...."

"Hi, is this Will?"   
"Uh, yeah. Who is this?" Will asked, pausing the show he was watching. When you're killing someone, don't wear your signature perfume. Come on, murderer. You're better than this.   
"Oh! Right, this is Nico. I was the guy at the restaurant bar with whom your friends flirted."  
"Well, hello, good sir. C— oh no. Why are you calling? Did they do something weird? And how did you get this number?"  
"No. They didn't do anything weird. Well, they might have, but nothing regarding me. They aren't being creeps. But I might not be the best person to judge, because I might sound like kind of a creep right now. I called your friend and he gave me your number and I wanted to know if you wanted to go out sometime?" 

No response. 

"I'm so sorry," Nico said, "I shouldn't have called. What was I thinking? Why am I like this? I apologize, I'm going to go now. Sorry. I- bye."   
"Wait." Will said into the phone. "I didn't answer because I was kinda weirded out by how you called Percy so you could call me."  
"Yeah, sorry about that. I feel awful. I didn't-"  
"I think it's cute. Wanna meet up Sunday?"


	108. Will’s Family

"Will, why do we have to go visit your family? Your family is the worst." Nico whined.   
"My family is not the worst. They're..... fun. My Aunt Martha and Uncle Henry are coming." Will responded. "Plus, you're my fiancé now. You've only met my mom, like, eight times. She wants to know the person her son is marrying."  
"Okay, I get that. Let's go." Nico stood up and took Will's arm and they walked to the nearest shadow. 

"Oh, Will. How good to see you!" Will's mother wrapped him in a hug. Then she stepped back and smiled at him. "You looked thinner last time we saw you."   
"Hi!" Nico butted in. "How are you, Ms. Solace?"  
"Hello, Nico. What an interesting outfit choice. Black, as usual. How about you two come in? Nico, you can help me finish dinner."

Will was very uncomfortable. He was sitting in the living room while his stepdad watched Empire. He had tried to go into the kitchen with Nico, but his mom had closed the door before he could get in. "We should probably help them cook, Larry."  
"Aw, nonsense. I don't cook, I eat."   
Then Larry laughed as if he had just made the funniest joke.

Nico was also very uncomfortable. Probably even more uncomfortable than Will. He was making whipped cream with Naomi's hand mixer.   
"You know, we had hoped for Will to bring home a nice girl, but you'll do. You're close enough, anyway. You wear makeup."  
"Okay, um, thanks?" Nico said, suddenly feeling a little self conscious about his eyeliner. 

After Will's aunt and uncle arrived, everyone sat down to eat. Nico and Will weren't allowed to sit next to each other, even though the other couples could. Nico took a bite of his clam chowder. He hated clam chowder, and he knew that Will had told Naomi that, but he didn't want to complain. It was awkward enough as is.

"Do you have any pets, Nico?" Naomi asked.  
"Yeah. I have a cat named Lizard. Will and I were lying in bed one night when she—""  
"That is vile and disgusting!" Will's uncle said.  
"What? Why?" Nico asked, confused.  
"You should not talk about this! It is vile and disgusting. Stop trying to be cool."  
"I'm not.... what? What's vile and disgusting?"  
"Talking about how you and Will had sex."  
Nico looked dumbfounded. Will put his head in his hands and groaned.   
"I think you misunderstood." Nico explained, "I wasn't trying to be cool. I was just talking about Lizard."  
"You're being disrespectful! You were laying in bed together. That is nasty."  
"Will and I are engaged. We sleep in the same bed. I wasn't going to say anything about our sex lives."  
"Uncle Henry, please stop." Will said. "Just eat your clam chowder and listen to the story about Lizard."  
"Well," Henry said, "I think that you two-"  
"Who wants wine?" Naomi interrupted.  
"I'd love some!" Aunt Martha said. 

A half hour later, dinner was done and Aunt Martha was drunk. Will was surprised it had taken this long. She was shouting at her husband about his new motorcycle. 

Nico walked around the fight to get to Will, making sure not to draw attention to himself. Unfortunately, he did draw attention to himself. He knocked over a vase, shattering glass and spilling water on the carpet. Everyone stared at him.   
"Sorry," Nico said, "I'll clean this up. Do you all have a dustpan?"  
"How dare you?" Naomi asked, very angry. "That was an antique vase! From Florida!"  
Nico just stood there.   
"You've got nothing to say for yourself? Youth these days." 

Nico was relieved when it was time to go. Will Hughes him mom goodbye and went outside. He and Nico shadowtraveled home.

"Will, I am never visiting your family again." Nico said, laying in bed with his fiancé.   
"Yeah. I forget how terrible they can be. I'm so sorry." Will said.   
"It's not your fault. I love you."  
Will kissed his cheek. "I love you, too."  
"Also, your mom gave me this creepy cursed doll."  
"What?"


	109. The Job

Will was going to be blunt here. He didn't like the new guy. He didn't like him one bit. He thought he was so cool with his accounting job and his luscious black hair and his slight Italian accent. Everyone was charmed by him. Everyone, that is, except Will. Will saw past his act. Will knew that Nico had stolen the last donut yesterday. Will had been waiting all morning to get out of a meeting so he could grab the pink donut with sprinkles. When he finally was able to leave the meeting, the donut was gone. And there Nico was, sitting at his desk, eating the donut. 

When Will had confronted him about it, Nico didn't even look up from his computer. "Those donuts were for everyone," He said, "It's not my fault that you were too slow and didn't get one."

The next day was even worse. Will came in to find his keyboard covered in plastic wrap, and he knew exactly who did it. He could see Nico sitting at his desk, typing innocently. He could see the way Nico was looking at him. He could see the smile on Nico's face. A smile that said 'I covered your keyboard in plastic wrap.' 

 

On Saturday, Will was getting a cheeseburger. Cheeseburgers were his guilty pleasure. He was sitting outside the fast food place, eating his cheeseburger, when he looked across the street and saw his coworker. He was reading a book on a bench, listening to music through headphones. 

That was the day Will decided. He was the gay of this office. Will finished his cheeseburger and drove home. He sat at his desk and began composing a plan. He would drive Nico to quit. Will was the supreme gay, and no one would would take that from him. 

"Hey, Di Angelo. I made some brownies. Want one?" Will asked during lunch.  
"Why are you calling me Di Angelo? Are you mad?" Nico asked.  
"Take the fucking brownie, man." Will insisted.  
"I just found out yesterday that I'm allergic to gluten. It's a bummer." Nico replied, picking up his gluten free pasta and hurrying away from Will. "Bye, Will. Gotta go crunch numbers."

Will washed the paint off his brushes. He had just made Nico the most grotesque painting he could think to paint. The painting was of a wolf made of moldy cheese. He would give it to him tomorrow.

"Oh, wow! Thanks, Will. How did you know?"   
Will was dumbfounded. "What?"  
"How did you know that I love wolves? And that I love cheese? And the mold adds a nice pop of color. Thank you so much, Will. You're the best." 

Will sat in bed, plotting. Maybe if he made gluten free brownies and filled them with cocaine? No! Will thought. Bad Will! That's illegal. Bad! Where would I even find cocaine? I could fill his desk with liverwurst. Oh! I've got it. I'll wrap his keyboard in plastic wrap. Give him a taste of his own medicine.

The next day, Will got to work early. He wrapped Nico’s keyboard in plastic wrap and waited. Nico came in about half an hour later. He was holding coffee and talking to one of their coworkers absentmindedly. Will watched him walk to his desk, then looked away, waiting to hear the reaction.

“Thank goodness this plastic wrap is here.” Nico said. Will’s head snapped in his direction.   
“What?!” Will asked.  
“Yeah,” Nico explained, “I spilled coffee on my keyboard. It would have been ruined if you hadn’t wrapped it in plastic.”  
Will blushed and stammered. “I didn’t— what makes you think— argh!” Will threw his hands to his head. He didn’t notice Nico’s smug smile as he walked away. 

Will didn’t get any work done that day. He just kept glancing over at his enemy. Nico sat there all day, except for when he got up to use the bathroom. This gave Will an idea. 

 

Will got to work early again. He went into the bathrooms and taped pictures of Mr. Bean to the toilet lids, so when Nico picked it up, he would be greeted by the seductive face of Mr. Bean.

What Will failed to account for was that he worked in an office with a ton of people. Nico was not the first one to use the bathroom, and therefore it was not him who found the Mr. Bean. 

What else could Will do? He sat at his desk and stroked his chin. Oh! Will thought, I know! I’ll cover his desk with sticky notes. That’ll show him!

 

Will woke up even earlier this time. He rolled out of bed onto the floor and forced himself to get dressed. He went outside. It was still dark out. He went to the store and bought a ton of sticky notes.

When Will got to work, he was met with a surprise. Nico was sitting at his desk, holding two fancy coffees. “Hey, Will.”  
“What’s going on?” Will asked, very disoriented.  
“You’ve been flirting with me for the last week and I know you were never going do ask me out, so I decided to take matters into my own hands. What’s with all the post-its?”  
“I, um, I was going to cover your desk in sticky notes. What do you mean, flirting with you?” 

Nico looked at him weird. “You covered my keyboard with plastic? You taped Mr. Bean on the toilets to scare me? Were you not flirting?”

Will thought back. He could see where his pranks could have been seen as flirting. But did he like Nico? Like, like like? Will thought about it.   
“Holy crap.” He said. “I like you.”

Nico smiled. “I like you, too.”


	110. Mortal! Will

There he goes, Will thought as the boy passed his family's apartment. He passed everyday, and everyday Will wondered about him. Why was he so short and angry? Why did he have so many scars? Why did he have a taser strapped to his side? Why did he seem to disappear when he stepped into shadows? Maybe because his clothes were so dark that he blended in. Will wasn't sure. But he was sure that he wanted to know more about that boy. 

The next time the boy walked by, Will ran out to say hi.   
"Hi! I'm Will Solace. Who are you?"   
The boy looked uncomfortable. "I'm Nico Di Angelo."   
"What's up?" Will asked.   
"Um... what?"  
"What's going on in your life, Nico. What's your favorite pastime? How's the family?"  
"Why do you want to know about my family? Why are you talking to me?"  
"I saw you from my window and you looked cool."  
"That's creepy." Nico's hand hovered over his taser.   
"Agh! Please don't taser me!"  
"Taser you?"  
"Tase? Taserify? I don't know, man. I just don't like being hurt."  
"Dude, I'm not going to hurt you. I need to go. Don't follow me." Then he walked off.

The idea to follow Nico wouldn't have occurred to Will had Nico not mentioned it. But Nico did mention it, and so that's what Will did. He followed Nico through twisted alleys and behind buildings until they got to behind an abandoned building. He took out a spray bottle and a coin. He sprayed the water in the air. A rainbow formed. He tossed the coin in and spoke. "Annabeth Chase, Camp Half Blood."

Then, and Will could barely believe this, an image formed in the mist. There was a girl of about seventeen standing there. She looked like she had been waiting for the message.   
"Nico, why didn't you call sooner? Jason was worried."  
"Some mortal stopped me to talk. Also, he called my sword a taser. That was annoying. What did you want to talk about?"  
"Have you seen any monsters around?"  
"No."  
"Are you sure?"  
"I'm pretty sure."  
"Good. I'll tell Chiron that— wait. What's that behind you?" 

Nico turned around right as Will ducked behind a crate. "I don't see anything. I'll go check to make sure. Tell Jason, Hazel, and Reyna hello."  
"Jason's still kinda mad that you didn't stay after the war with Gaea. But yeah, I'll tell him you said hi. And I'll tell Hazel and Reyna next time I see them."  
"Typical Jason. Bye."  
"Bye."

Nico walked toward where Will was hiding, but Will had already left.

 

As soon as Will got to his home, he called one of his closest friends.   
"Lou Ellen, I need to talk."  
"Will, what's wrong? You sound like you've just been through some tough shit."  
"Very eloquent. I'm fine. I just.... I just need to talk."

"So, you know the cute emo kid I talked about? I followed him today."  
"That's creepy, William."  
"I know, I know. I didn't realize that when I was doing it. So anyway, I followed him to this creepy abandoned building. He took out a spray bottle and made a rainbow in the light coming from a broken window. Then he spoke to it and a girl appeared in the rainbow."  
"Are you high?"  
"No. Stop always asking me that. The girl said something about monsters and someone named Gaea and someone named Jason. Then he said that someone called his sword a taser. But the thing is, it was a taser until he said that. But after, when I looked at it, I saw a creepy black sword."

Lou Ellen nodded. "This sounds like the game Mythomagic. Greek gods and monsters like Gaea and the centaur."  
"That's crazy, Lou."  
"Crazier than seeing a girl in a rainbow?"

Will considered this for a moment. "You're probably right. It's just.... hard to believe."  
"You should ask him about it. Maybe he's a god."

 

"Yo!" Will called out his window at Nico. Nico stopped. He looked up and waved.   
Will ran outside where Nico was standing.   
"I need to ask you something. Are you a god?" Will asked.  
Nico looked very panicked. "What? There are no gods here. The only Lord I believe in is our lord and savior, Jesus Christ. I'm in the Jesus religion. Amen."  
"Uh huh. Why do you have a sword?"  
"I don't have a sword."  
"Yeah, it's right there." Will pointed to Nico's sword.

Nico snapped his fingers. "It's a taser."  
"Just admit that you're a god!"  
"I'm not a god, idiot. Now let me pass you, I have places to be."

Will stepped back and Nico walked away. This time, Will didn't follow him. But on that day, Will vowed to himself that he would get to the bottom of this. 

Who was Nico Di Angelo? 

AN//I want to do a part two but I have no idea how I would do it lol


	111. Mortal! Will Part Two

Ever since that encounter, Will had studied Greek mythology. He had to see what god Nico was. Maybe Nike? Nike was a similar name to Nico. Maybe Hades? Nico was pretty dark and creepy. In a good way, though. Will liked it. He thought it was cute. Maybe Erebus? Hecate? Achlys? Eros? Dionysus? Will wasn’t sure. But he was sure that there was a whole other world that he didn’t know about. And he wanted to know more.

Will had really taken a liking to ancient Greek healing. He couldn’t do any of the practices he read about, but it was still cool to learn. Asclepius had big dick energy. 

Will really wanted to see Nico again, to ask him things and to just chat. Nico seemed like the kind of person who would be fun to hang out with, once you got to know him. And Will would be lying if he said that he hadn’t thought about how attractive Nico was. 

A few weeks later, Will got his wish, just not how he wanted to.   
Good news: he got to see Nico again.   
Bad news: Nico was lying on the ground outside of Will’s apartment, covered in scratches and cuts.   
The bad far out-weighed the good.

Will picked up Nico, who was surprisingly heavy for such a small person, and took him inside. He plopped him on his bed and ran to the kitchen. In the kitchen he kept medical equipment. Will grabbed some before pausing. What if normal medicine doesn’t work on gods? He thought. That was a risk he’d have to take. 

When he got back to his room, Nico was awake, just barely.   
“Nico! Can you use mortal medicine?”  
“There’s nectar in my pocket,” Nico groaned. Will pulled it out and poured some into Nico’s mouth. Nico’s cuts began to heal. “I knew you were a god!” Will exclaimed.  
“I’m not a god.”  
“I just gave you nectar and it worked. You’re a god. Don’t worry. I won’t tell anyone.”  
Nico sighed. “I’m a demigod, not a god.”  
“Oh. Still cool.”

Nico started to get up, but Will pushed him back into the bed. “No!”  
“What the Hades? Let me go.”  
“No. You have to stay here until you’re better. Stay here, I’m going to get some alcohol wipes to clean your remaining cuts.”

Nico looked around Will’s room. It was nice. There were a lot of plants and posters for musicals. He also had a window. Nico could easily climb out that window and flee into the night, but he chose not to. Will seemed nice. He wasn’t the worst person to spend an afternoon with.

“Alrighty! I’ve got some neosporen, some alcohol wipes, and some bandages. How are you feeling?”  
“I’m fine.”  
“No. How are you feeling?”  
“I said I’m fine.”  
“How are you really feeling?”

Nico sighed. “Alright, fine. You win. My arms hurt and my head hurts. But it’s not that bad, I’ve been through far worse.”  
“Do you want to talk about it?”  
Nico considered this for a moment. “Sure.”  
“Great! I’ll patch up your cuts while you talk about your feelings.”

“Bianca sounds like she was amazing. And Percy sounds really hot, not gonna lie.” Will said when Nico was finished. Will was done bandaging the cuts, and now they were just chatting.  
“You’re right about both of those things. Bianca was amazing. I thought Percy was hot for a long time. But then I decided to stop wasting time on a straight guy. He’s not my type anyway.”

“I should probably get going.” Nico said sadly.   
“Are you sure?” Will asked.  
“Yeah. But we should do this again. You know, minus the blood and gore and stuff.”  
“I agree. Maybe we could meet up next Sunday? You could meet me here and I could show you my favorite book shop.”  
“That sounds great. And, Will?”   
“Yeah?” 

Nico pressed his lips ever so slightly against Will’s cheek. “See you Sunday.” He stepped into the shadows, and then he was gone, leaving Will to stand alone in his room, hand on cheek, daydreaming about what had just happened.


	112. Wishes

Nico snuck past his dad, passed out drunk on the floor. He creeped upstairs and locked his bedroom door. He went to his book shelf and pulled out his favorite book. He sat on his bed and began to reread his favorite story.

Out of all the characters in the book, Will Solace was Nico's favorite. He was the quirky best friend. He was kind and smart. He was a healer who aided the others on their quests. 

Nico wished that he could dive inside the book and be with Will. He wished he could escape the harsh realities of life. He wished things were different. He wished his mom wasn't dead. He wished his sister wasn't suicidal. He wished his dad wasn't an alcoholic. He wished he could be with Will.


	113. Ocean

Will knew it was a bad idea to visit the beach at midnight, but what was the point of living by the beach if you couldn't go look at the ocean whenever you wanted? 

Will snuck out of his quiet neighborhood and onto the beach. He sat down on the sand and closed his eyes, breathing in the salty sea air. 

Will opened his eyes and looked at the stars above him. He looked at the sea in front of him. It was beautiful here. So peaceful and serene. A sense of calm washed over him. This was where he felt most comfortable. The beach was where he felt safe. It was like his home.

Will didn't think he could ever regret moving to the coast. 

When the wave rushed over Will's head, he instantly regretted his choice. The last thing he saw before the world disappeared was a shimmery black tail. 

 

When Will came to, he found himself in a dark cave. At first, he couldn't see anything. But when his eyes adjusted....

"Aaah! What the heck? Why am I in a cave? Who are you? Where am I?" Will screamed. 

"Shh. It's okay." A boy said. He looked about Will's age. He had dark hair and a sharp jaw line. He also had a very long fish tail instead of legs. "My name is Nico. You're fine. You were drowning, but now you're not. I saved you with almost no side effects."

"Side effects? What are you talking about? Where are we?"

Nico looked uncomfortable. "We're in a cave outside of town. As for side effects.... well, look down."

Will shrieked. "Aaah! Why do I have a tail?"

"Can you be any louder? Wake up even more people?"

"Oh, I'm sorry. I was just turned into a mermaid. That's pretty alarming. So, if you don't mind, I'm going to freak out!"

"Ugh. I saved you from drowning, dude. This was the only way. Take some deep breaths." Nico swam over to where Will was sitting. "It's going to be okay. Let me show you around the city. It'll be fun."

 

"Woah." Will said as he and Nico swam down the city streets. "Mermaids have a city. That's amazing."  
Nico laughed. "There's way more than one city, man."  
"Oh. Yeah, duh. Ooh! That shop looks fun."

A few minutes later, Nico and Will were inside a hat shop, trying on the worst hats they could find. 

"Nico, look." Will said, putting on a hat that looked like a blobfish. 

"You look ridiculous." Nico laughed. 

"Rude. I am a delight." Will said. This just made Nico laugh more. Nico's laugh made Will think. Maybe being a mermaid would be fun. At the very least, he'd get to stay with Nico, and that was reason enough for him.


	114. Witch Bitch

Nico scanned the shelves of crystals. He wished they were in alphabetical order. What if he needed a crystal that came in multiple colors, huh? Like some jasper? Jasper came in multiple colors. Yellow, red, black and white.... well, that was pretty much it. Maybe jasper wasn't the best example.

Today, Nico wasn't looking for jasper. He was looking for black tourmaline. There was a spirit in his house that just wouldn't leave, and Nico didn't have the money to pay a psychic to do what he could do on his own. All he needed was some sage, a white candle, and a crystal. Also, he needed more milk, but that was irrelevant to the spirit. He just happened to be out of milk. 

Nico stared at the wall of crystals, his eyes scanning the dark rocks for the crystal he required. 

"Ack!" He yelled when he fell to the ground, the full weight of another man lying on top of him. "What the fuck?"

"Oh, shit. I am so sorry." Said the person on top of him, rolling off and pushing himself up off the ground. He held a hand out to Nico. Nico accepted and pulled himself up.

"I'm so sorry, man." The man said. 

"Yeah, what was that? Do you often go into metaphysical shops and hurl yourself at strangers?"

"I tripped on a cat." The man explained. 

Nico thought about this. The shop was indeed the home of many cats. He wasn't sure if this was a pro or a con to this shop, but at the moment, it was a con. It made a guy fall on him. But, on the other hand, the guy was incredibly attractive.....

"It's fine." Nico said. "I'm Nico. What are you looking for today?"

"I'm Will. Will Solace. I need more candles. I love candles. How about you?"

"Yeah, candles are nice. I need to get black tourmaline. There's a spirit that lives in my room that I need to banish. His name is Enrique."

"Ooh. What kind of things does he do?"

"He pulls my blanket a few inches so my feet get cold."

"How do you know you just aren't kicking up your blanket?"

"Because it's perfectly folded up at my ankles. And once he left a note saying, 'Wash your feet. Ghosts don't like sucking dirty toes.'"

"What the fuck?"

"Yeah. Now you get why I need to banish him."

"Creepy. How do you know his name is Enrique?"

"Whenever I go to the bathroom, I hear heavy breathing and fog appears on my mirror. Then the word 'Enrique' appears on the fog. The worst part is that next to his name, he always draws a penis."

"That's the worst part to you?"

"Don't judge me, man." Nico said, crossing his arms.

"Sorry. Enrique sounds like a pain. Do..... you need any help cleansing your house?"

"No. This isn't my first rodeo."

"That's what I'm going to say at my second rodeo."

"But I'd love to hang out some other time. Maybe we could take a candle making class together or something."

Will grinned. "That sounds good. Here's my number."


End file.
